Through His Eyes
by Kendra Luehr
Summary: (SxF) Two broken souls...two broken hearts. Can a pair as lost in themselves as Spike Spiegel and Faye Valentine actually find love again...with each OTHER? lol Please tell me what you think! ;) (lemon x 3) COMPLETED! Ending is a kick in the pants, lol.
1. Brushing With the Past

  
**A/N:** Heh...sorry, but I just HAD 2 correct these typos! They were driving me NUTS!!! . lol N-e-whoz, I'm actually proud of this story, so I hope that u like it! It's been lots of fun writing, & still IS, lol, so ENJOY! ^,~  
  
It had been one year...one _long,_ miserable year ever since _'his'_ disapperance. Ever since then Faye had absolutely refused to talk or even think about him, but that was nearly impossible. The smug, fuzzy-headed bounty hunter could _never_ be forgotten, and it killed her to realize that she had fallen so deeply for a dead man.  
The whole truth of the matter was that Spike had been a walking dead man to begin with, what with his 'devil-may-care' attitude and his constant experiences that pushed him back and forth between the thin dividend of life and death.  
Faye hated him for it, but, at the same time, couldn't help but fall in love with that amazing sense of confidence that he so often managed to possess. He had always had a strength that she secretly admired and coveted, and now that he was gone, she found that she missed that about him the most.  
After he left and it was almost certain that he would never return, Faye left the Bebop without looking back, not even saying a good-bye to her older comrade since she genuinely had not wanted to deal with the harsh lecture that she would most likely have to endure.  
_"Faye, he's NOT coming back,"_ she could almost hear him say as he tenderly clipped his bonsai, _"don't just run off like this with the hopes of finding him, cuz it **ain't** gonna happen."  
_Ah, indeed, Faye _had_ dreamt of finding him.....quite often, in fact. Instead, however, she ended up finding a friend; Katy Brewer, to be exact.  
The young woman was as clumsy and scatter-brained as they come, thus causing Faye to finally understand the degrading insult 'all thumbs'. The fiery redhead was not, however, discouraged by this obvious impediment. In fact, she took it upon herself to apply for a position at a local glassware factory, which Faye knew was a disaster just waiting to happen.  
As suspected, poor Katy was fired within one week of employment, which, quite frankly, was a huge success story to the young woman since she had finally overcome her best employment record of one and a half days.  
The odd duo had lived together in a rented apartment as roommates for approximately one month without a single conflict or discord, but now, as Faye's friend entered their small living room, she sensed that something was highly amiss.  
"These," Katy began, shaking a stack of photographs about between her fingers, "what _are_ they?"  
Faye gasped, instantly recognizing the photos that her roommate was currently holding captive within her taut grip, her heart pounding in sheer consternation as she finally managed to squeak, "W-where did you get those?!"  
"Your room," Katy replied shortly, tossing them down into her lap as she unceremoniously flopped down beside her onto the couch. "I wanted to borrow a necklace since I figured that you wouldn't mind, and whenever I opened up your jewelry box I found these, instead. What_ are _they?"_  
_A huge lump that Faye could not swallow began to form in her throat as she looked the photographs before her over in despair, the cynical grins of herself and her comrades grinning back at her as if in a manner of mockery as she immediately pushed them away, replying brusquely, "They are nothing but fragments of my past......_take them out of my sight at **once**."  
_"But I....," Katy faltered, quirking an eyebrow as she desperately searched for something reassuring to say within the bowels of her cluttered mind, only to conclude lamely, "I-I thought that these photographs would cheer you up and I, uh....I wanted to know who the dog, the little boy, the big bald man, and the cute guy are."  
Faye snorted. "That _boy_ is a girl, and long gone with that mutt, the old man was like everyone's over-controlling father, and the last guy.....he....._well_.....it doesn't really matter what he was and what happened to him. He made his decision, so therefore it's all over and done with."  
_"I see,"_ Katy acknowledged softly, confusion clearly scrawled out across her dainty features as she briefly studied the photographs once more, then shrugged it off. "Oh, well, if you're not going to tell it to me straight, I guess that I'll just let this sleeping dog lie. I mean, if you can't even tell _me,_ your closest friend, about whatever it is that's troubling you, I might as well not even bother."  
Faye sighed, then looked up at her roommate with a sad, weary expression upon her face before replying feebly, "I'm _sorry,_ Katy, but I can't.....I'm trying my best to will my past away, and, quite frankly, this really isn't helping."  
"But _why_ would you want to _do_ that?!," she demanded, clenching and unclenching her fists by her sides in utter frustration as she snatched up the photographs from her roommate's lap in disgust. "Were these people really _that_ bad?!"  
_"No,"_ Faye admitted, laggardly rising up from the old suede couch, "but I'm afraid that that is all that I can tell you. _Goodnight, Katy."  
_"Hmph....goodnight, _yourself,"_ Katy returned hotly, only to find herself glancing down once more at the photographs in her hand and resting her gaze upon the tall, lanky man that was standing beside her best friend.  
"Who _were_ you, and why do you have such a powerful hold on Faye?," she asked aloud once she knew for a fact that her roommate was now in her bedroom. "Were you friends, lovers, or enemies? _Possibly a little of all three?_ Oh, _hell,_ as if I'd ever find out! Faye's always so reclusive when it comes to her past, so why on earth did she hide these damned photos in such an _obvious_ place?!"  
**************************************************************************************************  
Spike Spiegel sharply inhaled the sweet cancer of his cigarette in order to rid himself of some built-up tension, his deep, two-toned irises resting desolately upon a small picture showcased within a mahogany frame ontop of his bedtable as a single name elicited forth from his lips. _"Julia..."  
_How long ago had it been since her untimely death? Months? _Years?_ What difference did it really make, anyway?   
Every moment without her felt like another nail was being added to his coffin, so he found that he no longer cared about futurely matters such as time and money.  
Spike had always felt as if he saw the world in shades of gray, but now that his love was no longer by his side he realized that this was, indeed, very true. Julia had been his only source of color upon his caliginous palette, but that fateful moment when she breathed her last breath the color was immediately blotted up, thus leaving him in a dull, somber world with small patches of reality.  
So there he was, lying comfortably upon a sofa in his apartment in the Red Dragon headquarters, completely alone and ungrateful to his savior, Davis Holland, who had taken it upon himself to call an ambulance as soon as the syndicate's soon-to-be-leader collapsed like a deadweight onto the headquarter steps.  
If it weren't for that man Spike would be dead, and the way he saw it, the mere notion of it was pure bliss. He never truly felt alive, anyway; everything just seemed like a dream to him. A long, agonizing dream that he would never wake up from.  
Shuffling about within his apartment like a stoned zombie, Spike barely made a reaction when there came a sudden knock at the door.  
_"Come in,"_ he replied gruffly.  
Immediately obliging to his order, the door swung open and in stepped Davis Holland, himself, wearing a ridiculous grin upon his freckly face as he announced cheerfully, "Good news, Mr. Spiegel....we _finally_ found her! It seems that she was here on Mars right under our noses the _entire_ time!"  
Spike smirked. _"Is that right?"  
_"Yeah," Davis acknowledged, still breathless with europhia, "and we can go and get her right now, if you'd like."  
Spike suddenly frowned. Faye was a woman, and most women were very emotional. What if their reuniting 'non-agressively' were to backfire? Would she forgive him? Would she even understand why he had gone and decided not to return?  
_"She'll have to,"_ he decided inwardly, _"I won't give her any other option."  
_ Finally turning his attention back towards his extremely undignified lackey, Spike returned curtly, "Yeah, I suppose that we_ should_......it _is_, after all, about time that I paid my dear shew of a comrade a little visit."  
**************************************************************************************************  
_Knock! Knock! Knock!  
_Katy groaned, immediately removing the bridal magazine that she had been reading from her face as she realized that, to her utter dismay, there was someone at the door and, since she had fallen asleep on the couch, her hair probably looked a fright.  
Grumbling to herself due to the uncomfortable stiffness of her neck thanks entirely to the position that she had been sleeping in, Katy unceremoniously stalked over to the door and threw it open, only to let out a sharp gasp of astonishment.  
"Good evening," the man greeted politely, "my name is Davis Holland and with me, here, is an old friend of Faye's. Do you mind if we speak to her for a while?"  
Katy gave both men a dazed look, finding the one friend to be strangely familiar as she conceded with slight uncertainty, "Oh, yes, of couse......_come in, won't you?_ Just make yourselves at home while I go and wake up 'Sleeping Beauty'."  
"Thank you," Davis acknowledged, grinning from ear-to-ear as soon as he and Spike followed the young woman into the tiny apartment, his transfixed gaze never leaving her perfect, rotund bottom as he gave a slight nod of appreciation.  
_"Don't be foolish,"_ Spike growled into his ear as soon as the young woman had disappeared into what was supposedly Faye's bedroom. "We're here on the account of business..._not_ on the account of women and how babies are made!"  
Davis let out an uneasy laugh, replying defensively, _"What're ya talkin' about?_ I was just....uh...."  
_"Mr. Holland?"  
_Both men turned around.  
"Faye's ready to see you two now," Katy announced, sounding very much like a professional secretary. "If either of you harm her, however, I'm kickin' _both_ of your asses to the curb!"  
Spike chuckled, giving her a subtle nod of the head as he gibed with amusement, "What a _charming_ young woman you are."  
Katy glared at him, clearly not won over by his insensitivity. Instead of hooking him across the jaw like her expression so clearly revealed that she wanted to do, she turned her back to him and took the hand of a fragile-looking young woman who was hiding inside of her room, gently coaxing her out and into the living room until she was there for all eyes to see.  
Spike smiled, yet it never reached his eyes. It was Faye, alright, but there was something about her that bothered him. It was almost as if she were....._weaker.  
_Finally lifting her gaze up from the tackily carpeted floor, Faye cried out in astonishment, instantly choking on unshed tears as she managed to gasp in utter disbelief, _"Spike...._y-you're....._alive!"  
_He smirked in return. _"Yo."  
  
****_A/N: Well, wuz that any better???? lol heh -.-' **+PLEASE R&R!!!!!!!+  
**  
3 Kendra Luehr =^-^= ~*~HUGZNKISSES~*~ 


	2. A Rather Unwilling Reunion

  
_  
****_A/N: Hiya! ^^ WOW! Thank you SOOOO much for all of these friggin' awesome reviews!!! This is record-breaking for me, cuz even my fic with 366 reviews didn't get THIS many on just the FIRST chapter, so wow! Keep those amazing reviews coming & thanks, cuz they're honestly what gives me the ability to keep going! ^^ I must admit that this chapter isn't that gr8, but bare w/ me, cuz after this one it gets MUCH better! Also, I have a VEEERY important announcement @ the end, so read the A/N, please! Thank you so very much...R&R, and of course...ENJOY! ^,~_  
  
  
"Get out."  
  
_Spike frowned, his eyes glimmering over with astonishment. _"_I...._what?"  
  
_"I _said,_ get _OUT!!!,"_ Faye reiterated shrilly, no longer able to suppress the tears from coming as they cascaded down her porcelain doll-like cheeks in a warm, gentle flow. "Do you have _any_ idea how much this _hurts,_ Spike?! You're not real....y-you're _dead! GO AWAY!!!"  
  
_He stiffened. _"**Not** without **you**."  
_   
The room suddenly grew deathly silent, all eyes now resting upon Faye's distraught figure as she clenched and unclenched her fists by her sides in utter torment, her small, slender shoulders heaving along with each troubled breath as she raised her line of vision up to meet with her comrade's, her tone cold and harsh as she urged bitterly in a voice barely above a whisper, _"Go to Hell."  
_   
_"Very well,"_ Spike acknowledged, much to her deep surprise, "if that's how you want it, then it looks like we're going to have to do this the _hard_ way."  
  
Faye gasped. "Spike....what are you _doing?! _Stay away from me...I'm _warning _you-_aiyee! Put me DOWN!!!"  
  
_Spike smirked, easily evading the irascible shrew's disdainful swipes as he began to carry her kicking and screaming figure towards the door, Katy immediately intervening with his escape plan like a severely ticked bull dog on guard duty.  
  
"And just _where_ do you think _you're_ going?," she demanded gruffly, her deep blue eyes fiery and penetrating as she observed her adversary from head to foot. "You'd best put Faye down, or else I'm gonna hafta kick your ass, Mr. Spiegel!"  
  
Spike chuckled, then shook his head, urging calmly over towards his lackey, "Davis....tend to Miss Brewer, won't you? Faye and I have some _business_ to take care of, so we'll be going now."  
  
"Yes, sir," he acknowledged, grinning from ear-to-ear as he took Katy into a firm headlock and made the sudden observation that she smelled faintly of wild flowers, her growls of haughty protest only causing him to tighten his hold about her as he gave his boss the signal that it was now safe to leave without arousing any suspicions.  
  
Wasting no time upon this discovery, Spike immediately burst through the apartment door and into the hallway, Faye crying desperately for help as he began to casually strut along the carpeted corridor with her still slung over his shoulder like a heavy sack of potatoes.  
  
"I hope you didn't really mind my dropping in like that," he apologized casually, smirking as she suddenly stopped screaming and gave him a rough wallop on the back of his head due to his impertinence. Ignoring her violent action, he continued, "You see, I felt that I really needed to talk to you, but since you were being such a stubborn bitch about it I had to use force."  
  
Faye suddenly ceased in her incessant struggling and gave him a frightened look. _"W-where are you taking me, then?"  
  
"Some place nice,"_ Spike assured her gently, _"some place **very** nice."  
_**************************************************************************************************************************  
"So this is it, huh?"  
  
Spike nodded proudly. "Yep....home sweet home. _Ya like it?"  
  
"I do,"_ Faye admitted, completely awestruck as she gazed about her at the beautifully-furnished apartment and intricate designs in wonder. "Hell, if _this_ is the room that the leader of a syndicate is forced to live in, _sign me up!"  
  
_Spike smirked, turning away from her in order to face the broad window in the front of the apartment, announcing softly, "It's good to know that you've actually kept yourself out of trouble while I was gone. _No easy task, you know."  
  
_"Yes..._I know,"_ Faye agreed, laughing sadly in spite of herself as she carelessly sank down onto a nearby leather couch and allowed herself to be swallowed up by its abundant softness. _"The day that you left.....I....."_  
  
She trailed off. Bowing her head dejectedly, she allowed her hair to form a soft, silky violet curtain about her face, thus concealing her embittered emotions as she sensed Spike stiffen, his voice reflecting slight trepidation as he pressed rather impatiently, "The day I left you _what?"  
  
_Faye looked away, feeling as if he had eyes on the back of his head and they were burning into her soul like two hot pokers, her voice slightly pained due to the bitter memory of his departure as she conceded softly, _"It doesn't matter anymore....._what's done is done. _Why live in the mistakes of the past whenever we've got the mistakes of the future to look forward to?"  
  
_Spike finally turned to face her, his eyes both hauntingly beautiful within the dimly lit room as if they were the mirrors to his very soul, his facial features somber and doleful as he ventured unceremoniously, "I'm sorry, Faye....I _really_ am. I know for a fact that you'll most likely never truly understand why I ran off like that to fight Vicious to the death, but _please_ try. I mean, if _you_ constantly saw the world in shades of gray and as one long, agonizing dream, wouldn't _you_ like to awaken to a warm, color-filled morning with plenty of sunshine leaking through the windows as if it were proclaiming the vast joys of life? _That,_ Faye Valentine, is what I believe is a _real_ dream come true."  
  
She hesitated. "So did you actually...._wake up?"  
  
"No,"_ Spike acknowledged, shaking his head sorrowfully, "I did _so_ much more than that......I found that I was actually alive in body, but completely dead in soul. There was no longer anyone or anything to live for...._nothing to call my **own**._ After recovering from my nearly fatal wounds I ended up here, now forever doomed to lead the one syndicate that plagued me with everything that it stands for since my very beginning."  
  
Faye suddenly rose to her feet, her jade irises reflecting with worry as she questioned anxiously, _"And what about me?_ What on _earth_ possessed you to want to come _all_ the way out to my apartment just to bring me back _here?"  
  
_Spike smiled weakly. _"That, I'm afraid, I honestly can't answer."  
  
_"But-"  
  
"You should get some rest," he cut in, gradually easing himself out of his cheap blue suit jacket as he chuckled upon seeing the young vixen's perplexed expression upon her face. "It's been a pretty big day, what with us reuniting and all, and tomorrow will be even _bigger,_ so I think that it'd be wise if you went straight to bed."  
  
Faye raised an eyebrow. _"What's going to happen tomorrow?"  
  
_Spike smirked, sending her an impish look as he acknowledged evasively, _"You'll see."_  
  
  
  
**A/N: VEEEEERY IMPORTANT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!** lol, ok, now that I have your undiveded attention (hopefully, heh -_-'), we have a petition circulating around that's called the We Want More COWBOY BEBOP Petition! So if you want a 2nd season, or w/e, please let me know (my email address is in my profile) so that I can send it to you and then you can sign it!!! Oh, & PLEASE put in the good word for SxF! Like say that you'd LOVE it if those 2 could hook up in the 2nd season! lol WE NEED YOUR SUPPORT!!! =P Thankies!!! lol, see that little button thingy down there??? Please click it & donate 2 the needy author's fund...a VERY good cause! ^^ Besides, if u don't, I won't put up ch 3, & ch 3 & the rest here on out are gonna be pretty good, I suppose! lol, I mean...I told 1 of my friends the story lines, & SHE thought it sounded very good, so ::crosses fingers:: hopefully u guys will, 2! ^^ Luv ya bunches! ^,~  
3 Kendra Luehr  
  
  



	3. Half A Kiss

  
  
**A/N:** Hey, guys! ^^ Long time no write, no??? lol, I know, I know...I've just been UBER bizzy w/ school & whatnot, so I'm sorry! . lol, hopefully this makes up for it cuz of the Spike/Fayeness! lol R&R, and of course...ENJOY! ^,~  
  
  
  
A soft, mournful tinkling melody filled the bowels of Spike's cluttered mind like a ballad of desolate despair, his eyes squeezing shut tightly as he leaned forward and nauseasly cradled his head within his hands with the hopes of quieting the persistant tune, but to no avail. _"Julia......**dammit**."  
  
_Shakily reaching for his smoldering cigarette that was perched precariously upon the edge of his ash tray, Spike immediately brought it up to his lips and inhaled the sweet cancer, his mind now slightly at ease as he released a delicate puff of smoke from his mouth into the air in the shape of an 'o' like a silvery-gray blanket of quietus.  
  
"Hey....._are you alright?"  
  
_Spike's head immediately shot up from his hands, his beautiful two-toned irises locking with Faye's startling jade ones as she took a tentative step forward, the look of concern etched upon her facial features troubling him greatly as he sank back down in his chair and immediately looked away.  
  
Considerably hurt by his actions, Faye snorted, then irritably plopped down into the small upholstered chair directly across from him, demanding a little more tartly than she had originally anticipated, "So what is it that you have in store for me, exactly, Spike? _No funny business, either....._I want to know and I want to know _now."  
  
_He smirked, admiring her frankness to a certain degree as he acknowledged bluntly, "You'll find out when you find out, Faye....._simple as that."  
  
_"And what the hell is _that_ supposed to mean?!," she demanded shrilly, her voice gradually increasing in volume as she leapt up from her chair and challengingly stared him down. _"I believe that I said no funny business, Spike, so **stop** talking in tongues! I'm not a friggin' psychic, you know!"  
  
"Yeah....I know,"_ he returned softly, his usual fiery spirit now officially depleted of its argumentive side as he cast his incredible gaze heavenward and sighed, a faint hint of bitterness scintillating within those haunting two-toned orbs as he cocked his head at an angle and gave her a wry smile. "I see that you still put up a decent fight....you haven't lost your spark _after _all. I must admit that I kinda thought that you would've since you were all reclusive back at your apartment."  
  
Faye flinched, truly feeling the sharp end of what he had just so insensitively uttered as she clenched and unclenched her fists by her sides in disdain, her delicate heart breaking as she admitted softly, _"I **wouldn't** have been able to be like myself at all if it weren't for you coming back, Spike. I.....I really missed you."  
  
_He froze, his cigarette falling from his lips and into his lap with a subtle 'plop' as he looked the young woman before him over with great astonishment, his gaze never leaving her pained facade as she tried her hardest not to break down into tears and throw yet another fit.  
  
Cautiously rising up from his chair, Spike instinctively moved to take Faye into his arms, but she immediately pushed him away, urging tartly, _"**Don't touch me**.....I don't **need** your pity."  
_   
Spike frowned, a deep sense of austerity swimming within his incredible russet-colored orbs as he nodded, holding his hands up in surrender as he cautiously backed away and let out a tremendous sigh of utter disgust. _"Fine_....I get it, _alright?_ You're _still_ mad at me, but how many times do I have to say that I'm _sorry?!"  
  
_"Just once, I suppose, but I _still_ don't understand why you left without a trace......why you left without even _telling_ me or Jet that you were still alive!," Faye wailed, pressing her hands firmly to her lips as hot tears burned along her dainty kohl lashes and threatened to escape in a heavy, ceaseless flow. "The _least_ you could've done was ease our troubled minds, Spike! Didn't you realize that you were leaving behind people who actually _cared?!"  
  
_He stiffened, his stance slightly straightening out as he elucidated sorrowfully, "I _couldn't_ tell you, Faye......if I had, I would've been putting the remaining _true_ Red Dragons and myself in danger. You see, during my recovery part of the Red Dragons who believed that Vicious should've been the true leader broke away and formed the Black Scorpions, whom are now forever bent on destroying me and my faithful followers. That's why we're currently living in this abandoned apartment complex, even though the fact that it's deserted has remainded, miraculously, unknown to the public, which _includes_ the Black Scorpions. _Do you understand **now**?"  
  
"Y-yes,"_ Faye managed to admit, now slightly embarrassed. "I'm _truly_ sorry for coming off so harshly....I _swear_, if I had known that-"  
  
_"It's ok,"_ Spike cut in, immediately turning his back to her before stuffing his hands into his pants' pockets and sighing deeply. "If I were in your position I would've been pretty pissed, myself, so let's just put this whole thing behind us and move on, _alright?"  
  
_Faye was slightly offended by his curtness, but nonetheless nodded, agreeing softly, "A-alright, if that's what you-"  
  
_"I do,"_ he interrupted once more, taking her completely by surprise as he spun back around and drew his face in close to hers. _"I want for us to get along again, Faye.....**to start over**."  
  
_She gasped subconsciously as she got a good glimpse of his soulful eyes, their haunting depths filling up with such an alluring passion that she gradually began to feel herself being reeled in by his enchanting spell.   
  
Reaching out a gentle hand, Spike touched the smoothness of Faye's pale, satin cheek, her heart doing the tango within her bosom as his free hand gingerly cradled her hip, his mesmorizing eyes continuing to captivate her being to the point of near-suffocation as the realization of their sudden closeness dawned on her and brought a deeper crimson to her already slightly flushed cheeks.  
          
Faye closed her eyes and let out a fervid sigh once she felt Spike's warm, satin lips subtly brush over her own in a moment of heated desire, a loud, piercing child's cry cutting through the air like a deranged wakeup call, thus jolting them both apart before they could complete their kiss.  
  
_"SPIKE-PERSON!!!,"_ the child cried again, but this time now fully audible.  
  
Faye gasped as a familiar blur of color burst in through the apartment door and wrapped itself about Spike's leg very much like a clingy octopus, her breath deserting her as she managed to splutter, "E-_Ed?! Is it **really** you?!"  
  
"FAYE-FAYE!!!,"_ the young adolescent returned joyfully, clearly in a state of pure euphoria as she detatched herself from Spike's spindly leg and threw her arms about her shocked comrade's slender waist in adoration. "Edward _missed _you, Faye-Faye! _Where has Faye-Faye been?"  
  
_"I.....uh....."  
  
_"It's ok!,"_ Edward cut in cheerily, giving her a cheesy grin. "As long as Spike-person and Faye-Faye are with Edward again, Edward is happy!"  
  
Faye shot Spike a questioning look, urging rather impatiently, _"Please explain."  
  
_Giving her a wry smirk, he returned softly, "Well, after my alleged death, Davis found a little redhead sneaking around our headquarters looking for something to eat, so he immediately took her to me in order to ask what he should do with her. Upon seeing me, Ed absolutely _refused_ to leave my side since she claimed that her father was severely negligent and that she had missed me, so I allowed her to stay with us in exchange for her hacking skills. I _was_ going to tell you, but..."  
  
_"It just slipped your mind?,"_ Faye supplied, her eyes narrowing as she folded her arms and gave him a terrible death glare.  
  
"Uh...._yeah," _Spike acknowledged helplessly, managing a small chuckle under his breath due to her terribly irate manner. "I have something else to tell you, but you've gotta promise me that you'll do it, alright?"  
  
Faye raised an eyebrow. "B-but I don't even _know_ what you're going to ask of me!"_  
  
_"I _know_ that," Spike conceded impatiently, "but it's very important to me that you do as I ask."  
  
"Oh....a-alright," Faye acknowledged, giving a slight shrug of her shoulders. "What is it that you want of me, exactly?"  
  
_"Spike-person wants Faye-Faye to work with him as a spy-spy!,"_ Edward blurted, giggling as her poofy-haired comrade gave her a dirty look. _"Faye-Faye will have to wear a tight, kite, flight cat suit! Meow meow meeeow!!!"  
  
_Faye blanched. "I..._what?!"  
  
"Please,_ Faye?," Spike urged, giving her an earnest look with his haunting eyes. "We need a woman to help us capture and kill Ezekial, the leader of the Black Scorpions. _Believe_ me, it's _important...._I wouldn't ask for you to endanger your life if it wasn't."  
  
Faye paused, then, realizing that Spike would most likely send her away and have absolutely nothing to do with her if she refused, she nodded, agreeing uneasily, "Y-yes.....I will help you, Spike."  
  
He smiled warmly. _"Thank you."  
_**************************************************************************************************************************  
_"Oh, my God, what was I **thinking**?!,"_ Spike wondered miserably as he stood shirtless out on the balcony to his apartment, a fine trail of silvery-gray filtering upwards from his cigarette as he continued to stand there leaning up against the railing in a state of bewildered grief. _"Why did I let myself almost kiss Faye?! Is it because I've been without Julia for so long now and that I needed to feel alive again? Yeah....that's probably it....but why HER?! She's given me nothing but trouble from day one!"  
            
_"Uh....._sir?"  
            
_Dropping his cigarette in absolute surprise, Spike whirled around, only to find himself face-to-face with Davis, who had managed to get into his apartment without being overheard by neither him or Faye.   
  
Finally recollecting himself, Spike managed to ask rather impatiently, "Yes, what is it, Davis? _Is something wrong?"_  
  
"No...of course not," his lackey assured him, forcing the cheesiest of grins. "I've got Kate locked up in your bathroom, though, just so ya know, and Spangler said that it's now officially safe to put our operation into play."  
  
Spike smirked. "Good...._let's go."  
  
  
  
****_A/N: heehee...suuuure, Spike...you almost kissed Faye b/c u were desperate. ::Coughs:: NOT! lol, heheh...if u still think that I should continue this, cuz I'm still not sure yet, then please click that little button thingy down there & let me know! Reviews ARE vastly appreciated....especially since I'm retiring soon! I luv ya bunches! ^,~  
3 Kendra Luehr_  
  
_


	4. Downfall

**(Yoko Kanno's "The Music Box" plays)**   
_"It was raining that day, as well."  
_ _Spike smirked as if he had just heard a great joke, questioning with slight amusement, "And so you didn't come because of the rain?"**  
** Julia paused, her lush blue irises filling up with rue as she returned stoically, "I was supposed to kill you...it was all set up.If I had.........I would've been** free.**_"_  
"So why didn't you?," Spike pressed, remaining completely emotionless. "Youchose to be hunted.....**why**?"**  
**"**Why** did you love me?," she cut in, giving him a miserable, saddened look with her haunting cerulean blue eyes.   
Spike didn't answer, a small smile remaining on his thin lips as his fair Julia took a small step forward and enveloped him within her warm, chary embrace, continuing fervently, "Let's just go away somewhere...escape...**vanish**......go somewhere where there's no one else.......**just the two of us**."  
THWACK!  
_"OW! What the hell was _that_ for?!," Spike demanded, grudgingly rubbing the back of his head as he sent his lackey a look full of tremendous indignance.  
"Dude, you were _totally_ zoned out!," Davis insisted, holding his hands up in surrender. "I had to bring ya back in order to flawlessly carry out this operation _some_how, and whappin' you a good one just seemed to be a good idea at the time!"  
"Right, _right,"_ Spike muttered, terribly reluctant to admit he was at fault. "Where's Faye? _Is she ready?"_  
"I'm right here, ready as always," a soft voice announced from behind, thus causing both men to whirl around in an instant of sheer astonishment.  
Davis allowed a whistle of appreciation to pass through his lips as he looked Faye over with immense approval, acknowledging aloud, _"Damn,_ you look hot in that cat suit! If _you_ can't seduce this Ezekial Chavez dude, _no_ one can!"  
Spike snorted. "Stop harassing her, Davis....remember our little agreement about _women?"_  
"Well _yeah,_ but-"  
_"Then start obeying it!,"_ he growled, turning his back to them before shakily reaching into his breast pocket for a desperately-needed cigarette.  
"Spike, are you ok?," Faye demanded, trying her best to mask her concern as she took a cautious step forward. "Would you like for me to get you anything?"  
He frowned, his incredible two-toned irises burning into her own like two fiery embers, his voice now calm and even as he returned phlegmatically, "No thanks...I-I'm _fine_. **_Excuse me_**..."  
Watching him egress the room in a frightfully haughty manner, Faye immediately turned to Davis, demanding irritably, "What the _hell _is wrong with him, Davis? Why on earth is he acting so strangely?!"  
"I dunno...maybe cuz you remind him of Julia since you're standing there all good-looking, and stuff," he offered, giving a slight shrug of his shoulders as he suddenly pretended to be terribly interested in the beige carpet beneath them.  
_"Julia?,"_ Faye repeated, shocked. "Why the hell would I remind him of _her?!"  
_Davis shrugged again. "Probably cuz you both seem to hold that exact same dark, mysterious aura within your hearts. No one knows what you're up to, but they sure as hell wanna find out. _Know what I mean?"  
_"I-I guess so," Faye acknowledged, "but I _still_ don't understand why Spike has to act like such a huge jerk about it."  
"Let that go, alright?," Davis urged, sending her a hard, yet deeply sympathetic glance. "In precisely half an hour you've got a job to do, so you _can't_ let Spike ruin your train of thought."  
Faye bowed in acknowledgement, conceding softly, _"Got it."  
_Davis smirked. _"Good."  
_****************************************************************************************************_  
_**"What are you doing here?!"  
Faye gasped, her heartrate rapidly ascending as she spun around on her stiletto heel in order to face the dreaded assailant, her fists clenched firmly at her sides as she finally managed to stammer in response, "I....I came to see Ezekial.....h-he's my boyfriend."  
"Ah, well why didn'tcha say so, babe?," the henchman demanded, a low chuckle escaping his full, coral lips as he gruffly seized her by the wrist and pulled her onward towards a long, narrow corridor. "C'mon, babe...I'm sure that Ezekial will be mighty pleased to see you."  
Faye forced a small smile despite the slight pain in her wrist, acceding with a mock syrupy sweetness, _"Yes_....I certainly hope so."  
After leading her down the long, circumscribed passageway for quite some time, the henchman suddenly stopped, thus causing Faye to collide into his hip without warning.  
Giving her a suggestive smirk, the henchman then rapped on the large oak double doors before them, hollering at the top of his lungs, _"Chavez-sama...._I've got a girl here that claims to be your main squeeze!"  
_"Let her in,"_ a deep, booming voice acknowledged in response.  
Sending Faye a smug look, the henchman opened up the doors, urging huskily, "Go on, babe...Ezekial's waitin' for your sweet ass."  
Thoroughly disgusted by how this man treated women, Faye turned her nose up into the air and sauntered on into the beautifully-furnished room as if she were a duchess, only pausing with her regal act the moment that the large doors firmly slammed shut from abaft.  
"So, you're my girlfriend, are ya?"  
Faye gasped, taking a slight step backward as a well-dressed man turned around within his high-upholstered swivel chair and sent her a charming smile. That _smile...._it chilled her to the very bone.  
"What's the matter, my dear?," he demanded, immediately rising up from his seat. "Are you so speechless that you can't even give me your _name?"  
_"Uh, Faye," she returned, "Faye.......Spiegel."  
Ezekial stiffened. _"Spiegel?_ As in Spike Spiegel's _wife?"  
_"Oh, no, no...I....I-"  
"You've made a _big_ mistake coming here tonight, missy!," he growled, immediately snatching his letter opener up off of his desk and taking an advancing step towards her trembling form. "If you hadn't been so foolish you might've been able to get out of this ordeal _alive!"  
_Faye gasped. "No..._please!_ You don't _understand,_ I-"   
Ezekial suddenly cut off all conversation and lunged forward, pressing the deadly letter opener against the milky-white flesh of her throat as he urged huskily, _"Shut up and enjoy the ride, bitch....you're about to be **raped**."  
_**************************************************************************************************  
"Any word from her?"  
Davis shook his head. "Nope...she's not responding to my calls."  
Spike grimaced, swearing brusquely under his breath, _"Dammit...._I knew that this was going to happen....I just _knew_ it! Faye always _did_ have a knack for getting her ass caught, and yet we decided that _she_ was our best option!"  
Davis leaned back in his chair and yawned, waving his hand at him dismissively as he returned, "Aw, she'll be _fine...._with a body like _that_ they wouldn't wanna kill her!"  
Spike froze. "You're right....they'd want to..._oh, God......_I've got to get down there _right_ now!!!"_  
_"Hey, _wait!_ What the hell do you think you're doing?!," Davis demanded, watching on in utter bewilderment as his boss grabbed his dark trench coat off of the coat hanger and made a mad dash for the door.  
_ "No time to explain, Davis_.....in the mean time, just keep trying to keep in touch with Faye!," Spike ordered, immediately slamming the door shut hurriedly behind him and leaving his lackey sitting there with an incredulous look plastered upon his troubled face.  
Shaking his head in utter disgust, Davis pleaded aloud, "Would someone _please_ tell me what the hell is going on here?!"  
Receiving nothing but the ominous howling of the wind from outside the headquarter's window, he rolled his eyes, muttering reverently under his breath, _"Only_ Spike."  
**************************************************************************************************  
"C'mon, _c'mon...._where _are_ you?!," Spike wondered aloud, perspiration clinging upon his brow like a light mist of apprehension as he continued to search every nook and cranny of the Black Scorpion headquarters, his trusty Jericho within his steady hand all the while.  
As if in answer, there suddenly came a shrill, piercing scream, the flesh on the back of Spike's neck beginning to crawl as he sensed the tremendous stress within the tremors of the cry for help and took off towards the sound as quickly as his long legs would carry him.  
The petrified shrieks continued to lure him onward, his heart pounding within his chest with great celerity, thus causing him to wonder with vast incredulity, _"Why am I so worried? I shouldn't be...I mean, c'mon, this is **Faye** we're talking about, here!"  
_Stopping abruptly in front of two large oak double doors, Spike frowned, instantly realizing that this was the place where his comrade was being held captive.  
Taking a deep breath, he leveled out his Jericho, aimed, then fired.  
_BANG!  
_There was a loud scream the moment that Spike burst his way into the room like a mad bull, his eyes widening as he then laid his eyes upon Ezekial, a half-naked Faye from the waist up lying trembling beneath him upon his large desk.  
"Ah, Mr. Spiegel," he acknowledged coldly, "did you have to come in just _now?_ Faye and I are rather...._busy."  
_Spike scowled, immediately aiming his weapon between Ezekial's eyes as he urged haughtily, _"Get the fuck off of her, you sick bastard, or I'll shoot! NOW!!!"  
_Ezekial smirked, lifting Faye's petite form up into his arms before agreeing in a soft, formidable fashion, _"As you wish."  
BANG!  
_Spike choked, his heart feeling as if it had stopped the moment that Faye fell forward and to the ground in a crumpled heap, the smug laughter from Ezekial's pale, thin lips only increasing in volume as he laid the gun that he had hidden within his breast pocket down onto the desk with a subtle clatter.  
His hands shaking by his sides, Spike acted immediately on his blinded rage and brought his Jericho up to eye level and began to fire in a steadfast, seemingly ceaseless flow.   
_BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!  
Click.  
_The chambers were officially empty.  
Immediately discarding his gun off to the side, Spike raced forward and dropped down to his knees, only to lift Faye's limp form up into his arms and give her a subtle shake, calling frantically, "Faye....._Faye?!"  
_She weakly looked up at him, and before he knew it, her face suddenly transformed into Julia's wan countenance before she died, her soft, rosy lips puckering slightly as she breathed formidably, _"It's all...........a dream."  
"No,"_ Spike contradicted, violently shaking his head back and forth, _"leave me alone! Why won't you just leave me **alone**?!"  
_Faye's face suddenly reappeared again and she smiled, breathing his name in a reverent tone before asking in a hushed whisper, _"You.......came for me?"  
_Spike nodded, taking her hand in his as he tried his best not to blush due to her half-nakedness. "Yeah...I-I did."  
_"I'm so glad,"_ Faye breathed, sending him a tired smile before she closed her incredible jade eyes and entered the intense world of dark unconsciousness, the realization of how much she truly loved him dawning on her just as she parted from her surroundings and took the frightful plunge into the unknown. 


	5. Earth Girls Ain't Easy

  
  
**A/N:** Hey, guyz! ^^ I FINALLY got inspiration 4 this chappie, so here it is! =-D lol please R&R, and of course...ENJOY! ^,~  
  
**+Flashbacks Are In Italics+**  
  
_"Where are you going? WHY are you going?"  
  
Spike glanced down the barrel of Faye's revolver and met her pained gaze with his haunting eyes, her tenacious facade quivering like a foundation just waiting to collapse as she watched him stand there before her like a rock.  
  
Finally deciding to lower her deadly weapon, she continued, "You told me once to forget the past...cuz it doesn't matter...but YOU'RE the one still tied to the past, Spike!"  
  
He gave a subtle shrug of his broad shoulders and took a step forward, leaning in close to her startled being until he was just mere inches from her face, urging softly, "Look at my eyes, Faye.....one of them is a fake cuz I lost it in an accident. Since then, I've been seeing the past in one eye, and the present in the other, so I thought I could only see patches of reality.....never the whole picture."  
  
"Don't tell me things like that," Faye begged, beginning to tremble as he remained unmoving before her. "You've never told me anything about yourself, so **don't** tell me now!"_  
_   
Spike, however, completely ignored her, a slight smirk forming upon his thin lips as he continued distantly, "I felt like I was watching a dream I'd never wake up from.......before I knew it, the dream was **all** over."  
  
Faye couldn't help but gasp the moment that he uttered those words, her strong facade quickly beginning to crumble into nothingness as Spike walked around her miserable form with the full intention of leaving, her voice cracking slightly as she made one last attempt to get him to stay, announcing softly, "My memory finally came back...but nothing good came of it. There was no place for me to return to....this was the only place I could go.......and now you're **leaving**, just like that!"  
  
Spike stared off morosely down the long corridor, absolutely refusing to say anything as Faye demanded shakily, "Why do you have to go....where are you going....what are you going to **do**?! Just throw your life away like it was **nothing**?!!"  
  
"I'm not going there to die," Spike insisted with an adamant firmness that she truly wished that she could believe, "I'm going there to find out if I'm really alive. I **have** to do it, Faye."  
  
With that said, he immediately began to trudge off towards the docking bay, his boots slapping against the metal floor with a dull resonance that deeply reflected the hollowness within his heart as Faye choked on a sob, her body tensing up as she clicked back the hammer to her Glock and prepared to fire, the intention of shooting the one man whom she loved so great that it frightened her to no end.  
  
"No....," her mind contradicted harshly, "I love him.....I could **never** harm him."  
  
Raising the firearm up towards the ceiling, instead, Faye fired five rounds into the air as Spike's retreating figure began to recede amidst the seemingly never-ending corridor, tiny prismatic tears of pain and woe glistening upon her lashes like liquid fire as she continued to stand there, completely frozen in place.  
  
"No...," her mind screamed, "NO!"  
  
"**SPIKE**!!!"  
  
_Faye instantly shot up in bed as if she were attached to a spring, her throat now raw and scratchy from screaming as she mopped her damp brow with the back of her hand and pushed back the thin, violet tendrils that gently crowned her charming features, Spike immediately bursting into the bedroom with a look of sheer panic scrawled out across his face._  
  
"What the hell is it?!,"_ he demanded, rather moody now that he realized that she was alright and safe from harm. "If it's nothing, I'm going to be pissed since you dragged me away from my friggin' TV dinner, and I-"  
  
Spike paused, just then realizing how terribly forlorn and dejected she looked, his eyebrow quirking slightly upward as he pried cautiously, "Uh....are you ok? I'm sorry for yelling at you, but-"  
  
_"Don't,"_ she pleaded, immediately looking away. "I just had a nightmare....._that's all."  
  
_"Oh, well if it was just a _nightmare,"_ Spike teased, failing miserably at making light of the situation.  
  
Sending him a terrible death glare in return, Faye grumbled something about him being an insensitive oaf as she rolled over onto her side and stared blankly at the wall with the hopes of forgetting the one memory that plagued her mind to no end.  
  
"Faye," Spike began softly, "please look at me."  
  
She didn't move.  
  
Sighing heavily, he sat down upon the edge of her bed with a subtle bounce and cast his gaze heavenward, admitting softly, "You had us all real scared, Faye....you were in an unconscious state for three whole days. Sounds kinda familiar, huh?"  
  
Faye couldn't help but smile at the memory of tending to her accident-prone comrade's wounds after he had fought Vicious for the very first time, her voice hushed and nostalgic as she conceded softly in agreement, "Yeah.....you were _such_ a baby. It's a good thing that you recovered so fast, cuz I wasn't _about_ to change your diapers."  
  
Spike smirked in spite of himself, a light chuckle of appreciation escaping his lips as he returned gently, "I don't think that I ever really thanked you for that.....not for hitting me with that damned pillow, but for making sure that I pulled through alright. _Thanks."  
  
_Faye was absolutely stunned. Had Spike Spiegel, _the_ Spike Spiegel actually just _apologized?  
  
_"Uh...y-you're welcome," she miraculously managed to stammer, feebly lifting herself up into a sitting position with her elbows as an earnest look suddenly filled up her beautiful jade irises. "Katy.......is she here? I'd like to speak with her, if you don't mind."  
  
Spike nodded, his haunting garnet eyes scintillating with an emotion that she could not quite yet decipher as he acknowledged softly, "Yeah...she's in the kitchen with Davis. I'll go get her for you, but first I need to check your wound."  
  
Faye blinked. "You...._what?"  
  
_"Turn around," he commanded softly, the gentleness within his voice soothing her to the very core as she immediately obeyed him and awaited his hopefully brief inspection.   
  
Letting out a gasp of utter astonishment, Faye blushed a brilliant hue of scarlet the moment that Spike lifted her loose white nightshirt up and over her head, his warm, calloused hands carefully inspecting her scabby bullet wound as her pale, milky-white flesh began to quiver due to his enticing touch.  
  
Faye couldn't help but feel a guilty, sensual pleasure as he continued to examine her injury, her mind immediately returning to the embarrassing fantasies that she had had about him a while back as his voice suddenly cut in calmly and evenly, "Alright....all clear. I'll go and get Katy for you now, if you wish."  
  
"I'll come with you," Faye insisted, blushing furiously as she drew her left arm across her bare bosom and reached for her nightshirt in expectance. "Please give that to me."  
  
Spike blushed, as well, exclaiming, "Oh! Right, _right_....sorry about that....guess it just slipped my mind."  
  
Snatching the article of clothing from his outstretched hand before another word could be exchanged between them, Faye immediately pulled it over her head and swung her legs over the side of the bed, urging sheepishly, "Come on....show me where they are."  
  
Nodding stiffly in acknowledgement, Spike immediately led her into the kitchen, only to stop short once they both laid their eyes upon a rather unwelcome sight.  
  
There, directly before them beside the fridge were Katy and Davis, both of whom were involved in a very intimate embrace that caused Spike to clear his throat with the full hope of ending it.  
  
He succeeded.  
  
Turning towards his boss in sheer mortification, Davis released his newfound lover in absolute shock, insisting quickly, "I-it's not what you think, sir! Katy was choking, so I had to give her mouth-to-mouth....I _swear!"  
  
_"Nevermind that! We're just here for Miss Brewer!," Spike snapped, his eyes narrowing as he looked them both over with utter disgust. "Come on, Katy....Faye would like a word with you."  
  
She nodded, wringing her hands about anxiously as she acknowledged, "Yes, sir...as long as you two leave immediately."  
  
Watching on in slight surprise as to what had just happened, Faye turned back towards her friend once Spike and Davis had fully egressed the room and were now nowhere to be found, her voice filled with a terrible anxiety as she pressed, "Are you alright, Katy? I was _so_ worried about you!"  
  
"I can't imagine why when _you're_ the one that's caused everyone the most trouble," she returned, turning her nose up into the air as she folded her arms across her petite bosom in utter disgust. "If it weren't for that damned Spike Spiegel gentleman, none of this would have ever even happened to you in the first place!"  
  
Faye gasped. "Don't you _dare_ talk about Spike that way! He has done nothing to you to deserve such ridicule!"  
  
"He's brainwashed you," Katy declared sadly, shaking her head back and forth in utter disgust. "There's no use in communicating with a brick wall, let alone a woman who's so obviously in love."  
  
Faye felt her cheeks grow hot as her friend continued to look her over with severe suspicion, her voice cracking slightly as she insisted, "I am _not_ in love, Katy....he-he's just one of my dearest friends!"  
  
_"Bull shit!,"_ she retorted, slamming her fist down roughly onto the counter within a sudden fit of rage as her fiery eyes met those of her thoroughly astonished friend's. "You love him....I _know_ you do! I can see it in your eyes, Faye! When you're with him, you actually seem......_happy."  
  
_At this sudden remark Faye couldn't help but smile, her jade irises scintillating with emotion as she returned fervently in a hushed, soft tone barely above a whisper, "That, Katy, is because I _am."  
_**************************************************************************************************************************\  
_"Can I open my eyes, yet?"  
  
_Spike smirked. "No....not yet."  
  
"Oh, I feel _so_ foolish! What if I _fall?!,"_ Faye demanded, the wind whipping wildly throughout her tousled violet locks as she continued to amble along what felt to be a large dock, the sea air overpowering her senses as Spike continued to hold her by the arm and lead her along.  
  
"You won't fall," he insisted, "but that's only as long as you stay close to me."  
  
Faye smirked. "Well then I guess that I have no choice other than to let you lead the way.....what _is_ this big surprise, Spike?! I'm just _dying_ to know!"   
  
Grinning a huge grin despite his promise to himself to show forth no emotion, Spike suddenly pulled her to a halt, announcing gently into her ear, _"You can open your eyes, now."  
  
_ Immediately obeying his orders without even having to be told twice, Faye removed her hands from her line of vision and gasped, exclaiming with wonder, _"The Swordfish II!_ I-I don't understand.....why is _this_ my surprise, Spike?"  
  
"I'm going to take you for a little ride, if I may," he explained, a small smile gradually making its way across his warm, thin lips as he took her hands in his and gave them a gentle squeeze. "Ever since you told me that you rediscovered your past and had found nothing, I've wanted to make sure that you have a future......someplace to _belong_ to."  
  
"I-I'm afraid that I don't understand, Spike," Faye admitted, her heart rate beginning to rapidly increase due to her comrade's moving words. "What do you mean by that, exactly?"  
  
He smiled warmly. _"I'm taking you to Earth."  
  
****_A/N: ::coughs:: So how wuz that??? Should I STILL continue this??? What will happen on Earth? A romantic getaway??? =-D lol I'll never tell! ^^ Tee-hee. See that little button thingy down there? Please click on it so that u can have the WONDERFUL experience of reviewing! =P lol Luv ya bunches! ^,~  
3 Kendra Luehr_  
_


	6. Nothin' Good Comes From Earth

  
  
**A/N:** Alright, u know the drill, lol....flashbacks are in italics. ^^ lol I hope u like this chappie! SxF will start 2 warm up 2 each other a bit, lol. Please R&R, and of course...ENJOY! ^,~  
  
_"When this is over, I'm leaving the syndicate."  
  
Julia frowned, her haunting blue irises remaining completely devoid of all emotion as she gazed upon her lover within the moonlight, insisting darkly, "They'll kill you....you know how they work."  
  
"Let them say I'm dead," Spike contradicted, allowing a scornful chuckle to escape his thin lips as he extended a small piece of paper within his hand towards her. "I'll be waiting in the graveyard....**by** the graves, not in one."  
  
"Spike...," Julia began sorrowfully, "I can't come with you."  
  
"Yes, you can," he insisted, his voice laden with a desperateness that deeply frightened him since he was normally so cool and calm about every little thing. "We'll leave here.....we'll get out of this."  
  
Julia closed her eyes and let out a troubled sigh, demanding rather tartly, "And go **where**? Do **what**?"  
  
"Live....be **free**," Spike returned wistfully, a small smile coming to his lips at just the mere thought of their ultimate dream coming true. "It'll be like watching a dream."  
  
Allowing her eyes to once more gaze upon the small piece of paper within her lover's hand, Julia gingerly took it from his fingers and gasped, realizing that the simple parchment sealed both of their fates, fore she had accepted.  
  
_"Julia...."  
  
"What was that?," Faye demanded, sending Spike a funny look over her shoulder as she continued to unpack her luggage within the shabby hotel that they were currently staying.  
  
He immediately shook his head, muttering a dispirited _"nothing"_ under his breath before plopping down dolefully upon the edge of one of the twin-sized beds within their room.  
  
"The name _'Julia'_ doesn't sound like nothing," Faye insisted, turning around sharply from her belongings in order to face him. "Do you want to talk about it?"  
  
Spike grimaced. "If you already knew what I said, why the hell did you even bother asking?"  
  
"Because....because I'm......I'm worried about you," she admitted, folding her hands meekly before her as she allowed her head to bow forward in order to conceal her emotions. "Every time you mention that woman, you seem to get even worse. I don't want to see that happen anymore, Spike......._ever."  
  
_"Faye..."  
  
_"No,"_ she interrupted, pointing her finger towards him as she took a small step forward. "The way I see it, Julia has already condemned you to death since you're wasting away just thinking about her! Forget her, Spike...._please!_ If not for me, then for _yourself!"  
  
_"Faye, that's _enough!_ I took you here with the hopes of us both getting a break...._not_ to deal with the past!," Spike growled, immediately shooting up from the bed before turning his back on her within his sudden fit of untamed rage.  
  
Faye bit her lip as her eyes began to fill up with tiny, prismatic tears of pain and woe, her breath catching in her throat as she acknowledged shakily, "A-alright.....I promise that I'll never worry about you again......not _ever."  
  
_Spike stiffened. "Faye, don't be like that, I just-"  
  
"Please....leave me alone," she begged, turning her back to him, as well, as she pulled her jacket about her small, slender frame and headed on over towards the door. "I'm going to go out for a bit in order to clear my head."  
  
Spike frowned deeply. "Faye, _wait." _  
  
"Good-bye, Spike," she returned sorrowfully, immediately ripping open the door and dashing out into the hotel hallway before another word could be exchanged between them.  
**************************************************************************************************************************  
_"It's **so** beautiful," Faye thought, gazing on with wonder and delight as the space ship that she currently occupied continued to drift towards the bedazzling moon that now captivated everyone onboard. "I've never seen anything like this......it's absolutely magnificent."  
  
A warm smile formed its way along her full, rosy lips as she felt an indescribable joy over being one of the very first civilians to be bathed within the moon's luminous glow up close, her reverie immediately shattering into nothingness the moment that the woman beside her pointed a trembling finger towards the floating beverage upon her tray, demanding shakily, "I-is that **supposed** to be able to float like that? Just a second ago it was defying gravity!"  
  
"I...I don't know," Faye admitted, suddenly growing fearful. "Perhaps it's just a-"  
  
BOOM!  
  
Faye screamed the moment that one of the main thrusters of the space ship exploded, the tremendous force of gravity now compressing the shuttle so that is was being torn apart as each unsuspecting passenger began to panic and pray for their lives.  
  
Levitating up from her seat and into the air, Faye gasped as the window beside her cracked down the middle and contorted the moon into a broken image of destruction, her heart hammering wildly within her bosom as she suddenly grew faint, her world painting out into a sea of obscure darkness that engulfed her like a suffocating blanket of quietus.  
  
_"NO!," Faye screamed, trembling as she stood before the vacant site of her childhood, her brow prickling with perspiration as she suddenly dropped down to her knees and drew a box within the dirt with a nearby stick. "No....this _can't_ be happening....it _can't!_ I don't want to remember anymore....._ever!"  
  
_Shaking like a leaf, Faye wrapped her arms about her legs and held herself close, wondering why on earth she had been cursed with the worst punishment known to man.  
  
_"How could this have happened to me? I was always a good little girl....wasn't I?,"_ Faye wondered, fighting off tears as she watched the sun begin to set behind the trees. _"Why was **I** the one to get cryogenically frozen and brought back in the year 2071, only to find that everyone and everything that I ever loved were gone?!"  
  
_"So do you _always_ like to sit in makeshift boxes beside piles of rubble, or is this just a new thing for you?"  
  
Faye gasped due to the shock of overhearing the familiar voice, immediately whirling around from the dismal view of her home in order to face the dreaded being behind her.  
  
"S-_Spike!,"_ she choked, her breath instantly catching in her throat. "What are you doing here? _Why_ did you follow me?!"  
  
"Well I couldn't just let you leave by yourself...Earth is a very dangerous place," he insisted as if it were obvious, flawlessly able to mask his concern as he stuffed his hands within his pockets and gave her a stubborn look. "Now if you don't mind, I think that it'd be a very good idea to get back to the hotel."  
  
Faye snorted, then turned her nose up into the air before insisting firmly, _"No."  
  
_Spike raised an eyebrow. "No? What do you mean by that?"  
  
"Just what I said..._NO!,"_ she rebuked sharply, sending him a look that naturally would have caused all Hell to freeze over. "I-I just need some time alone, alright? This is where I grew up as a child, so please....just let me have this moment to mourn over what I've lost."  
  
Spike's iron clast gaze suddenly softened, his hand gingerly falling down upon her shoulder as he agreed good-naturedly, "Alright....but only if you promise that you'll come back to the hotel when you're ready."  
  
Faye returned his intense gaze and managed to bestow him with a small smile, conceding softly, "If that's what you want, then I will."  
  
"Thank you," he acknowledged softly, sending her on last wary glance before he began to head back on over towards his zip craft, the distance between them rapidly leaving a large void within Faye's heart as she bowed her head and shielded her pained gaze from the world behind a curtain of violet.  
  
_"I want to confide in him, but he couldn't possibly understand,"_ Faye told herself firmly, warm, prismatic tears gently streaming down along her porcelain cheeks as she held herself close and choked on a sob. _"I mean, how could he **possibly** know what it's like to fall asleep one moment, only to wake up nearly a century later with no one or anything to belong to?!"  
_**************************************************************************************************************************  
It was well past midnight when Faye finally returned to their shoddy hotel room, her eyes swollen from crying and her heart weighing her down with each advancing step that she happened to make as she shuffled past Spike's bed, only to freeze instantly.  
  
"Spike?," she questioned breathlessly, cocking her head at an angle as she continued to listen. "Are you...._crying?"  
  
_"I am _not,"_ came the pained voice, causing her to frown with concern.  
  
Gingerly approaching his bedside, Faye gasped once she laid her eyes upon his broad, trembling frame, his cheeks pale and moist amidst the moonlight as he continued to take in slow, labored breaths.  
  
Spike wasn't crying like a child, and she knew and understood that. His actions very much reminded her of those of a wounded soldier; he was strong, yet even stronger to allow his true feelings to show through his iron visage.  
  
_"Julia...,"_ he suddenly choked, shaking like a leaf, _"Julia....please, don't leave me. I love you, Julia.....**please**...."  
  
_Faye began to tremble due to observing this painful display, her heart going out to her mournful comrade as she placed a gentle hand upon his moist cheek and began to stroke his face, her voice calm and even as she urged softly, "Relax, Spike....everything will be ok. I'm here, now."  
  
_"Julia?,"_ he questioned, rolling over with the sole hopes of lying his two-toned irises upon his blonde beauty. _"Julia.....is that you?"  
  
_"No," Faye admitted, suddenly feeling guilty since she was not, "it's me....Faye."  
  
_"Faye?,"_ Spike reiterated, dazedly sitting up in bed in order to meet with her troubled gaze. "Oh, Faye....I-I think that I had another goddamned nightmare....I'm sorry for the inconvenience, I-"  
  
"No, hush....I'll just go, now," she immediately interjected, placing a beautifully-manicured finger upon his lips in order to silence him. "I can see that you still need a lot of rest, so I'll sleep in the next room so that I won't disturb you."  
  
Spike frowned deeply. "No you won't, Faye."  
  
She blinked. "I...._what?"  
  
"Please,_ Faye," he begged, taking her hands in his with a sudden desperateness that she could not quite explain, "please don't go....._stay with me,_ _tonight."_  
  
She gasped the moment that he buried his face within the crook of her neck and began to shake, her arms immediately wrapping about him as she felt his tears seep within her blouse and stain the material with their pain and woe, her fingers lightly stroking his hair as she breathed, "Don't worry, Spike....I'll be here for you.....all through the night."  
  
He pulled Faye closer as his silent acknowledgement, her heart heavy and swollen with sorrow as she felt herself relax within his demanding embrace, the two fallen souls drifting off to sleep with the aid of one another's desperately needed presence.  
  
**A/N:** ::looks @ u hopefully:: So how wuz that?? **Please** don't tell me that Spike wuz OOC, lol, cuz if u ever listened closely during the commercial thingy 4 Ballad of Fallen Angels, Spike says that it's like "the peeling of an onion", meaning that he wuz crying, lol. Well...that's how I interpreted that, heh. -.-' Sorry if this chappie wuz boring, or n-e-thing...I promise that it'll get better later! . lol Luv ya bunches! ^,~ **R&R!!!!!!  
**3 Kendra Luehr =^-^= 


	7. Foreplay and Having Visions

  
  
**A/N:** Hey, guys! ^^ Long time no see, neh? lol Well n-e-whoz, I'm all happy cuz me & my best bud get 2 go & see The Secret Window, 2morrow, so hopefully that's good! I'd also like sum reviews 2 accompany my happy day! =P lol ::hint hint:: heehee ^^ N-e-whoz, this chappie contains sum...well...::cough:: adult content, ::cough:: so if that bothers u, this isn't the fic 4 u! lol Welp, R&R, and of course...ENJOY! ^,~  
  
  
  
  
  
_"GET DOWN!!!"  
  
Julia gasped, immediately throwing herself down to the tiled rooftop and covering her head within a state of panic as Spike fired his revolver, his shot perfectly nailing the cronie in the chest just before he, himself, was fired at.  
  
BANG! BANG! BANG!  
  
Dropping down to his side, Spike grimaced as the henchman in the streets beside the black car commenced in firing, his hand shaking ever so slightly as he tried his damndest to reload his firearm.  
  
It was Julia...**she** did this to him. Normally he would be completely cool and collected while fighting, but no....not today. His fair love's life rested within his very hands, and, the way he saw it, he would be damned if anyone were to take her away from him.  
  
Finally managing to place the bullet successfully within its chamber, Spike leapt up from behind the shelter of the rooftop ledge and dashed along the side, firing aimlessly in the henchman's direction until he finally managed to nail him in the heart with one gorey blast of scarlet.  
  
His victory short-lived, Spike immediately spun around the moment that a bullet was fired, his heart skipping a beat once he realized whom the target had been. **Julia**....  
  
Letting out a barely audible gasp, Spike allowed his mouth to drop slightly agape, copious beads of perspiration clinging upon his brow as his pained two-toned irises took in the morbid image of his true love taking a heavy dive to the ground in a heap of blonde and scarlet.   
  
"JULIA!!!," Spike exclaimed, immediately casting his weapon off to the side before racing over to his fallen angel and lifting her limp figure up tenderly within his caring embrace. "Julia..."  
  
He gave her a subtle shake and she groaned, casting her soft, luminous blue eyes up towards his mismatched ones before replying in a voice barely above a whisper, "It's all......a dream."  
  
"Yeah," Spike agreed softly, "just a dream."  
  
Suddenly seeming to enter a state of repose, Julia's head dropped back languidly against his arm as the rain continued to pelt them both relentlessly like tiny beads of glass, a terrible clap of thunder bellowing amidst the roar of the rain as the whole atmosphere seemed to suddenly assimilate into an aura of complete and utter sorrow.  
  
Lifting his vengeful gaze up towards the heavens, Spike began to shake, his heart breaking as, for the very first time in his entire life, he realized that he really, truly **was** alone.  
_   
"SONOFABITCH!!!"  
  
Shooting up in bed, Spike began to gasp for air, his heart hammering wildly within his bosom like a boxing glove as he rested his tormented gaze upon Faye's sleeping form and allowed a rush of air to escape his lips, breathing in utter relief, "It was just.......a dream."  
  
"Mmmph..._Spike?"  
  
_He jumped, immediately turning to face his comrade, her glistening jade irises boring into his own with great intensity as she asked worriedly, "Are you ok? I heard you scream."  
  
Spike snorted. "I did _not_ scream."  
  
"Yes, you did," Faye argued, gently placing her hand upon his broad, tanned shoulder with concern. "If you don't want to talk about it I'll understand, but I really wish that you'd confide in me once in a while, Spike........I care about you."  
  
He gave her a funny look, denying harshly, _"No_ one gives a damn about me, so _don't_ give me that bullshit!"  
  
Faye, clearly hurt, immediately retracted from his being and shrank back, acknowledging dispiritedly, "Well...i-if that's what you want to believe, then I say so be it. After all, if you don't want to realize that people in this universe actually _do_ care about you, who am I to force you?"  
  
"Faye..."  
  
_"No," _she interjected, "don't you worry about me....I'll just got out for a walk, or something. It seems that I'm no longer welcome here, anyway, so I'll just go ahead and get out of your hair."  
  
Before Spike could protest, Faye leapt up from the bed and began to storm on over towards the door, her intention of leaving now terribly imminent as he found himself beginning to follow her within a blind sense of desperation.  
  
Just as she reached for the doorknob, a tremendous force crushed her up against the wall and held her firmly in place by the hips, a deep, sultry voice urging anxiously into her ear, "Please, Faye...._don't go."  
  
"Spike,"_ she acknowledged breathlessly, gasping the moment that he spun her around within his arms and crushed his lips against her own within a moment of heated desire, a low moan escaping the back of her throat as the warmth of his tongue pervaded her own and his strong, calloused hands slipped beneath her silky black gown and rolled over her tingling nipples.  
  
Arching her back so that her breasts molded into Spike's awaiting hands, Faye nipped and suckled along the tanned flesh of his neck with the sole hopes of gaining some sort of stability over the situation at hand, only to have him immediately burrow his hands deep within her panties and clench her firm bottom within his grasp before raising her up into the air, immediately wrapping her legs about his slender waist as if by some sort of feral instinct as he led her back over to the bed and eagerly tossed her down upon it.  
  
Raising her jade eyes up to meet with Spike's lust-filled garnet orbs, Faye seductively placed her hand between his legs and, without warning, gave him a demanding squeeze, her lips immediately curling upward into a pleased smirk as she felt his stiffen due to her sudden action.  
  
"What do you want from me, Faye?," he questioned, his calm, even tone mocking her as he lightly ghosted his fingers along her wet entrance as she continued to lay there in waiting. "Whatever you want, I'll give."  
  
_"Spike!,"_ she suddenly exclaimed, her eyes widening in surprise as she roughly seized him by the shoulders and cried out, his index and middle finger continuing to move about swiftly within her before he maliciously added another finger into her being. "Oh, God...._Spike!"  
  
_"Yes, my dear?," he continued to mock, now growing relentless due to the fact that he knew that he was pleasing her.  
  
Immediately sensing this, Faye frowned, her jade irises ablaze in a fire of pure outrage. He had pushed her too far.  
  
Seizing Spike by the hem of his pin-striped boxers, Faye immediately jerked them down to his knees and pinned him down upon his back, a devilish smirk curling its way upon her lips as she purred seductively into his ear, _"You,_ Spike Spiegel, will be sorry that you _ever_ messed with _me."  
  
_Before he could utter a single response, the irascible young vixen took him in her mouth, trying her best to supress a pleased giggle the moment that she felt him tense up and choke on a moan, his hips lifting up off of the mattress in sexual frustration as he tried his best to let her know that he wanted something more; something that she had yet to give him.  
  
Deciding that she had provoked him far enough, Faye snuggled into his arms and placed a desirous kiss upon his warm, satin lips, acknowledging breathily, _"I'm yours, Spike Spiegel."  
  
_Something deep within him seemed to thaw out the moment that she uttered those words, his feral instincts taking over in a flash as he flipped over on top of her and pinned her hands by either side of her head, agreeing triumphantly, _"You are **mine**."  
_   
Dragging her nails along the sensitive flesh of his back, Faye choked on a moan the moment that he thrusted deep within her, her vision truly seeming to overflow with stars due to the tremendous pain and pleasure that she was receiving all at once as he continued to ride her with all that he had, her voice tired and breathy as she whispered, _"I love you, Spike."  
  
_Then, everything seemed to fly by in a whirlwind of sensation, both lovers simultaneously reaching their climax as they held onto each other for dear life and waited for it all to gently subside.  
  
Gazing up into Spike's warm, mismatched eyes, she repeated fervently, _"I love you, Spike....I really do."  
  
_He didn't answer.  
  
Feeling as if her heart were breaking into a million pieces, Faye began to tremble, her breath hitching in her throat as Spike buried his face within the crook of her neck and let out a heavy sigh full of an emotion that she could not quite decipher.  
  
_"How **dare** he!,"_ she thought, fuming as the man whom she thought she loved continued to lie there within her arms acting as if there were nothing awkward going on between them at all. _"Why can't he just tell me that he loves me in return? Why would he sleep with me if he felt nothing for me at all?!"  
  
_Continuing to seethe over this like a tea kettle about to burst, Faye suddenly ran her fingers over one of Spike's soft, superficial battle scars, and then she knew. _Julia....._  
**************************************************************************************************************************  
"Ow! Ed's heady-head hurts!"  
  
"What's wrong, Edward?," Davis demanded, kneeling down so that he could look the young woman directly in the eye. "Do you have a headache?"  
  
Edward immediately shook her head. "No, I-_oooh_......my _head!_ I see someone....and she looks in trouble!"  
  
"Wait...you can actually see someone....in your _mind?!,"_ Davis demanded, his eyes widening in shock and awe.  
  
She nodded. "Yes, I think so, Davis-person....I'm scared!"  
  
"Don't be," he urged, tightening his grip upon her shoulders as he beckoned her closer with a single nod of his head. "I want for you to close your eyes and concentrate on what you see..._got it?"   
  
_Edward nodded, squeezing her eyes tightly closed. "Got it! Ed is concentrating, startiiiing _now!"  
  
"So you refuse to tell me where he is?"  
  
"I told you...I don't KNOW where he is!," the young woman insisted, her olive green eyes glazing over with sheer consternation as her hotheaded captor continued to pace back and forth before her like a beast without a cause. "I only worked by his side for a few days at the most, and then I never saw him again...**honest**!"  
  
The man snorted. "You **do** realized that I'll kill you if you're lying to me, don't you, Miss Ovilo?"  
  
"I do," she acknowledged, bowing her head, "so I suppose that I should have nothing to fear, because I am **not** lying."  
  
"We shall see," the man muttered, lifting a coruscating dagger up into the air in a formidable fashion so that it caught the reflection of the dim light just perfectly. "It's a pity that a beautiful woman such as yourself will have to die, Miss Ovilo, and one with such a fascinating background, too. And your name....**Electra**....it's such a fitting title for such a fiery, stunning young creature."  
  
Electra stiffened, gradually scooting back in her chair as much as her rope bindings would allow as he neared her, her voice crisp and harsh as she urged coldly, "Got to Hell."  
  
He let out a terrible laugh, then seized her by the throat and placed the dagger directly beneath her chin, agreeing frostily, "Fine....have it **your** way."  
  
_Edward gasped, her vision suddenly dissipating as quickly as it had come as she seized Davis by the collar and urged frantically, "Hurry, Davis-person! We have to help the girl in my vision!"  
  
"Well who is she?," he demanded, terribly bewildered.   
  
"Ed doesn't know, but she's in a warehouse somewhere," the young woman insisted, her golden eyes shimmering with excitement. "Ed also knows that it's nearby, cuz I overheard the sound of a foghorn in the background!"  
  
Davis' eyes widened in sudden recognition. "The Trobaugh Wharf! Quick, Ed, get your coat! We have _no_ time to lose!"  
  
  
**A/N:** Hmmm lol Who is the dude looking for? ::coughs:: Kinda obvious if u've seen the movie, lol...even though this character wasn't IN the movie, besides Electra. And no, DON'T worry, SxF fans, she will NOT break them apart. In fact, he won't even be interested in her @ all. She is, however, the gf of one of the crew, but I can't tell ya now cuz it's supposed 2 be a surprise! ^^ lol But I guess that u can already figure it out, heh. -.-' Go ahead & guess in ur review! It'll be fun! =P lol And yes, the "crew" as i put it includes all of the new characters, just 2 clear that up. lol N-e-whoz, PLEASE r&r, and...well...have a gr8 weekend! Sure, y not? I'm in a charitable mood 2day! rotfl Luv ya bunches! ^,~  
3 Kendra Luehr  
  



	8. New Developments

  
  
  
**A/N:** Hey, guys! I FINALLY updated, so yay! I got lazy, but then didn't, so yay again! =P lol W/e, haha...please R&R, and of course...ENJOY! ^,~  
  
  
"And so I've ruined yet another part of my life," Faye concluded aloud in a voice barely above a whisper, her vision blurred over by the warm, prismatic tears that gathered along her lashes as she gazed down upon Spike's sleeping form in utter dismay. "Oh, Spike....I guess I was right when I said that I had nowhere to go and nowhere to belong to. I can _never_ own your heart....I know that, now. It rightfully belongs to Julia, even through death, so I'll let the selfish bitch have it. I truly hope that you'll find happiness now that I've decided to walk out of your life and stay out of it...._forever."  
  
_Spike greeted this with a soft snore, thus causing Faye to smile despite the intense pain searing throughout her aching heart.   
  
Giving his cheek a gentle kiss as her unspoken good-bye, she immediately seized her jacket off of the dresser and gradually approached the door, making sure not to make a sound as she opened it up and stepped out into the bleak surroundings of the hotel hallway.  
  
Taking one last look at her beloved, Faye let out a heavy sigh and bowed her head, breathing despondently, _"Good-bye, my love.....we will never meet again."  
_**************************************************************************************************************************  
"What do you say, now, Electra? I'm giving you _one_ last chance."  
  
Electra frowned, the deep hatred that she clearly felt for the man before her reflecting off of her olive green irises as she struggled about within her rope bindings, returning cattily, "My reponse remains the same, Derek....kill me if you wish, but I will in no way, shape or form be involved with your sick plans for Spike Spiegel. For all you know, he could very easily end up kicking your ass five times before you even know what hit you."  
  
Letting out a cry full of sheer outrage, Derek lunged forward and seized the startled young woman by the throat, growling with menace, "I gave you a chance, Miss Ovilo, but now you've left me with no choice other than to _eliminate_ you!"  
  
_"Coward!,"_ Electra spat, her fiery gaze slightly masked by a few stray bangs of her puce-colored hair as she stared him down in utter contempt. "You're only threatening my life in order to make me weak and surrender, but it _won't_ work, Derek! It may be very hard to believe, but I'm much smarter than that! After all, working several years by your side in Cherios Medical should give me a slight clue as to what your typical response will preside along, don't you think?"  
  
By this point, Derek was beyond pissed. Rearing back, he struck her clear across the face with his large hand, barking, "Shut your damn mouth, you motherfuckin' wench! Mark my words, Electra, if you say _one_ more word, I'll-"  
  
"Do _nothing!,"_ a determined voice bellowed from behind, thus causing the mystified couple to glance over in the direction of the intruder with severe apprehension.   
  
"Who the fuck are _you?,"_ Derek demanded, finding himself gazing down the barrel of a gun as a gooney boy pranced around behind the young man before him.  
  
Smirking due to his own self-assurance, the assailant returned, "My name is Davis Holland....not that it's any of your business. I'm here for the girl, so I'd say that it'd be a pretty wise decision to let her go, unless, of course, you'd prefer to have a bullet lodged in your thick skull."  
  
Derek let out a deep, booming laugh. "Fuck off, small fry! The business between me and Miss Ovilo does _not_ concern you!"  
  
"Listen buddy, if you don't-"  
  
_"Elec-lec-lectra!,"_ Edward suddenly cut in, leaping over into the bemused young woman's lap before giving her a tight hug. "Do you recognize Ed? Ed _knew_ that she recognized you, but Ed couldn't figure out who you were!"  
  
Before Electra could reply, Derek took this distraction to his advantage and headbutted Davis in the forehead, thus causing him to crash down to the ground, his revolver clattering across the slick cement surface so that it was now well out of his reach as his opponent ever-so-slowly approached him.  
  
"What do you want, boy?," Derek demanded, briefly swirling his saliva about within his mouth before spitting it out at his adversary's feet in utter disgust. "If it's cuzza the girl like you claim, I find that I don't believe you."  
  
Davis frowned. "But it's the _truth!"  
  
_"Ha! _Sure_ it is," Derek returned, shaking his head as he gave the poor young man a swift kick in the ribs. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say that you're here to find out my plans for that Spike Spiegel fellow!"  
  
Davis blanched. "S-_Spike?_ A-are you a Black Scorpion?"  
  
"A-_ha!_ You _are_ here to warn him, aren't you?!," Derek demanded, bending down and seizing him by the collar before roughly yanking him up to eye level. "Now listen to me, kid, if you ever wanna see the light of day again, you'd better-"  
  
_"Super dee duper karate pooper!"  
  
_In a flash, Edward's long, gangly leg lunged out and connected with the back of Derek's skull, the fiendish young man plummeting down face-first to the ground, all of his signs of consciousness now completely diminished.  
  
Davis smirked. "Thanks, kid, but couldn't you have done that a little _sooner?"  
  
_Edward just merely giggled and wrapped her spindly arms about herself in a tight hug as her rather nonsensical response, chirping blissfully, "We got Electra-lectra-lectrolyte-person, now, so we can go home and eat, right?"  
  
"Well-"  
  
_"No!,"_ Electra immediately cut in, thus causing Davis to instantly close his mouth and bite his tongue in order to silence himself. "I've got to speak with Jet Black...._NOW!"  
  
_Davis raised an eyebrow in utter astonishment as Edward undid the emotional young woman's bindings, reiterating curiously, _"Jet?_ Now wait a minute, lady...that old-timer's out there in space somewhere onboard that hunka junk.....you'll_ never_ find him by yourself."  
  
"Then _help_ me find him! It's terribly important that I see him!," Electra insisted, her large, beautiful eyes filling up with an emotion that he couldn't quite yet decipher. "I met Jet through Spike, so perhaps _he_ knows where he is!"  
  
Davis drooped, returning in utter exasperation, "Listen, Miss Ovilo.....I _normally_ do things for gorgeous, attractive women such as yourself, but this is cuttin' the line! I came here to rescue you, _not_ to play hide-and-seek with a guy whom I've only heard about through my master!"  
  
"Take me to your master, then!," Electra growled, immediately flicking a small switch blade out of her pocket before placing it threateningly beneath his chin as her last resort. "Once I see Jet, I'll leave you guys alone. _Deal?"  
  
_Davis signed in resignation. "Fine....but I'll take you there, myself, since Spike's currently on earth and won't be able to show you the way."  
  
Electra nodded. _"Good."  
_**************************************************************************************************************************  
It was the grief. Yes, that had to be it. Why _else_ would Faye be so "in love" with a death warrant on legs? That man had caused her nothing but heartache and pain, yet she always came right back for a second helping of Hell, itself.  
  
Yes, it definitely had to be the grief. Strongs emotions always make one cling to feelings that wouldn't normally exist, so why should it be any different with love? Well...if _that's_ what the damned emotion was called.  
  
"This yer stop, ma'am?"  
  
Faye jumped, glancing up abruptly at the Taxi driver whom had addressed her before nodding weakly and handing him a nice little handful of woolongs, muttering bitterly, "Keep the change....I sure as hell won't be needing it where _I'm_ going."  
  
Gazing after her retreating figure in his rearview mirrow, the Taxi driver shook his head, grumbling something about foolish women as he stepped on the gas and drove off into the intense dark of the night.  
**************************************************************************************************************************  
_"Mmph..._my _head,"_ Spike groaned, absolutely refusing to open his eyes as he massaged his temples and let out a heavy sigh full of aggravation. "Faye, are you awake? I need some Advil _really _bad."  
  
No answer.  
  
_"Faye?"  
  
_Headache or no headache, Spike immediately shot up in bed only to find himself within a world of darkness, Faye obviously missing and the room appearing to be as barren as a desert.  
  
"Faye....where _are_ you? I-_FUCK!"  
  
_Tenderly grabbing the toe that he had just stubbed, Spike limped across the room and over to his coat, which he put on while grumbling numerous profanities over why he was so cursed in life.  
  
Hurriedly slipping into his pants, Spike muttered several more choice words under his breath before seizing his Jericho off of the dresser and making a mad dash for the door.  
**************************************************************************************************************************  
_"That's funny...._he left the door to the docking bay open," Electra observed as she, Davis and Edward continued to hover about within Davis' zipcraft beside the Bebop. "Anyone could just come on in any time that they pleased....that's not _like_ him! I'm worried!"  
  
Davis rolled his eyes. "Sheesh, were you two like romantically involved, or something? I mean, my _God,_ everything that's come outta your mouth has been Jet this, Jet that! Give it a_ rest!"  
  
_Electra chose to ignore him as he skillfully maneuvered the zipcraft into the docking bay, her hands beginning to tremble within her lap due to the dread that was rapidly building up within the pit of her stomach.  
  
_"Please be alright, my love,"_ she prayed silently, a veil of tears beginning to form along her long, kohl lashes as she bowed her head and continued to shake like a leaf. _"Please.....I **need** you, Jet. Be there waiting for me.....**wanting** me."  
  
_"Alrighty, hop on out!," Davis suddenly urged, thus cutting into her reverie like a knife through butter. "The sooner we get this over with, the sooner we get out."  
  
Electra glared daggers at him as she leapt out of the zipcraft with the grace of a cat, Edward bouncing along not too far behind.  
  
"We get to see Jet-Jet again!," the young woman chorused happily, suddenly grabbing onto both of her comrades' hands so that she was swinging back and forth between them. "It's been a _looong_ time since Ed saw him...do you think that he'll recognize us, Electra-lyte?"  
  
Electra smiled. "Of course he will...Jet _never_ forgets those that he loves, and you, as I recall, Ed, were _very_ special to him."  
  
The young woman beamed as they entered the ship, cheering blissfully, "Hooray! All is fair in love and war!"  
  
Electra opened her mouth to reply, only to immediately close it, a tremendous sob wrenching its way forth from her lips as she tore away from Davis and Edward and ran over to her fallen lover's side.  
  
_"Jet!,"_ she wailed, flipping his large body over so that he was now facing her. _"JET! _Oh, _please_ wake up...._PLEASE!!!"  
  
"Holy shit,"_ Davis swore brusquely under his breath, his eyes widening in utter shock as he rushed over to his sobbing comrade as fast as he could, Edward absolutely refusing to move from the hangar entrance as she continued to stand there trembling in fear. "Electra.....get off of him, you need to-"  
  
_"NO!,"_ she interjected harshly, taking an aimless swing at his head with her fist. "Leave me alone! I....._I need to be by myself for a while."_  
  
Davis sighed, running his fingers throughout his spiky brown hair before shaking his head, acknowledging softly, "Alright, Electra....have it your way. Ed and I will be waiting for you on the zipcraft. _Take your time."_  
  
"Thank you," she mumbled, cradling Jet's head within her lap as she listened to the solemn hollowness of her comrades' footfalls echoing throughout the Bebop, the sound soon disappearing completely into the solitude that was rapidly beginning to eat away at the weakened strands of her heart.  
  
Turning her attention back towards her fallen lover, she wondered aloud, "Oh, Jet.....what's happened to you? You were a man of great caution, so I just thought that maybe-_wait...._what the hell is _that?!"  
  
_Pulling Jet's arm away from his broad chest she gasped, instantly noticing the large scarlet stain that had bled through a small parchment upon the wound.  
  
Immediately removing the piece of paper from his mortal injury, Electra opened it up and read aloud, "The bigger they are, the harder they fall, when you read this, I hope you'll return my call. I warned you once, I warned you twice, so now your lover has been dubbed your sacrifice. Listen to me now and listen to me well, if you don't do as I ask, you will soon join him in Hell. Sincerely....._Derek?!_ Oh! _Damn that man!"  
_   
"Electra?"  
  
She gasped, immediately dropping the note as she spun around in order to intercept the intruder. Once she had recognized her comrade, however, she let out a sigh of relief, acknowledging wearily, "Davis.....I didn't hear you come back in. I was just about to leave, but I have one more favor to ask of you."  
  
"Anything," he agreed, feeling as if it were the least that he could do.  
  
"Please," she began softly, _"please_ pilot the Bebop back to earth so that we can give Jet a proper burial near my home. If I weren't able to visit him ever again, I don't know _what_ I'd do!"  
  
Davis suddenly felt obligated to take the sobbing young woman within his arms, so he did, his voice soft and full of a profound empathy as he crooned softly into her ear, "Hey, c'mon....._sssh._ Everything's gonna be ok, Electra. I'll take the Bebop back to earth and I'll even make sure that he gets a proper burial service. It's the least that I could do for you, so _please_.....don't feel the need to thank me."_   
  
_"Oh, but I _must!,"_ she insisted, placing a heartfelt kiss upon his cheek within a sudden rush of gratitude, her voice lowering slightly as she breathed into the crook of his neck, "you're an _amazing_ man, Mr. Holland, and I thank you."_   
_   
Davis swallowed. It had been a while since he had had a beautiful young woman in his arms, and just the mere sensation of her warm breath against his flesh was causing him to rapidly lose all sense of control.  
  
Sure, he felt something for Katy, but it wasn't like he was committed to her, or anything. They had only made out once or twice, and that was it.  
  
But Electra.....he felt an almost immediate attraction to. He was trying his damndest not to touch her intimately and he couldn't help but wonder if she were currently feeling the exact same way.  
  
Gazing deep into her eyes, Davis felt a huge lump begining to develop within his throat, her lips gradually quirking upward into a wry smile as she asked with a sudden twinge of amusement, _"What?"  
  
"Nothing,"_ he returned softly, gradually leaning in towards her. _"Nothing at all."  
  
_In a flash, Davis' lips devoured her own, Electra whimpering softly as he rolled his strong hands across her breasts and delved his tongue deep within her mouth before molding her body closely against his own.  
  
Before he could deepen their kiss, however, Electra immediately pulled away, denying harshly, _"No..._w-we can't."  
  
"But-"  
  
_"NO!,"_ she hissed, giving him a menacing look with her olive green eyes. "I should at least respect Jet's memory by waiting a month before I get involved with another man! If not, I might as well be a fucking whore!"  
  
Davis bowed his head, apologizing meekly, "I'm sorry, Electra....I really am. Please forgive me for coming off so forceful, but I.....I honestly couldn't help myself. I promise you that I'll _never_ do that to you without you permission again."  
  
Electra nodded stiffly. _"Good."  
_**************************************************************************************************************************  
"Excuse me....have you seen this woman?"  
  
Taking the small photograph within his hand, the middle-aged man nodded, running his fingers throughout his thinning hair before acknowledging softly, "Ay, sir...she was a passenger in my Taxi only a few hours ago. There's just no way in hell that I'd ever forget a gorgeous face like _that."  
  
_"Do you think you can take me to her?," Spike demanded, trying his best to mask his anxiety as he stuffed his hands within his pants' pockets and kicked at the tiled floor in an extremely impassive manner. "It's pretty important, so please......tell me everything that you know."  
  
Giving him a curious glance, the man downed one of the many shots that he had set up before him on the bar table, agreeing gruffly, "Ay, I can bring ya to her....I know the place well. She told me that she was gunna leave earth by tomorrow, so we may wanna get a move on in case she's already decided to leave."  
  
Spike nodded gratefully. "Thanks....lead the way."  
  
  
**AN:** Alrighty, guys, now you've gotta **VOTE**, ok??? I can't decide whether I wanna keep Davis and Katy together, or have them break it off and have him hook up with Electra. Tell me who you want me to pair up, ok??? lol They're only a secondary couple, though, so it's not a primary focus. I am SO sorry for not focusing more on SxF in this chappie, but I needed to get some other things outta the way, first. There will be PLENTY of that in the next chappie, so there ya go! ^^ lol PLEASE r&r! I haven't been getting very many reviews, lately. =*( lol So please donate to the needy authors fund! ^^ Thank ya! Luv ya bunches! ^,~  
3 Kendra Luehr   
  



	9. Love Only Brings Pain

  
  
  
**A/N:** Goodness, it's the darndest thing....for some reason a lot of you still thought that Jet was alive and wanted for him & Electra to stay together. The thing is, though, sad to say, is that he's DEAD. It's how it worked out for the storyline, so sorry, heh. -.-' As for Electra/Davis or Katy/Davis, it was a **TIE**, so you'll see what happens, & don't be so sure as to what it'll be, heeheehee. ^^ The most IMPORTANT thing, though, is SxF! So on w/ the fic! ^,~   
  
  
"This the place?"  
  
The Taxi driver nodded. "Ay...she looked purdy distraught, sir, so ya may wanna hurry."  
  
"Thanks," Spike acknowledged, handing the man a few woolongs before hopping out of the cab and onto the cracked pavement in front of the large, shabby hotel before him.  
  
As the vehicle sped off into the distance it suddenly began to rain, Spike shielding his eyes from the chilling liquid as he gazed up towards the glistening windows with the hopes of possibly catching a glimpse of his irascible comrade.  
  
Finding nothing but a few unfamiliar shadows, he took a deep breath, shook his head, & inwardly braced himself for the hell that he was most likely about to endure as he muttered softly under his breath, "Welp...here goes nothin'."  
**************************************************************************************************************************  
_CRASH!  
  
_Faye winced the moment that one of the stray shards of glass from the cup that she had purposely dropped lodged its way into the side of her bare foot, her fingers trembling as she bent over and reached for the largest piece of glass and slowly brought it up to her vulnerable wrist.  
  
"It will soon be over," Faye assured herself in a hushed whisper. "Soon...._very _soon."_  
  
"Faye?"_  
  
She gasped, instantly spinning around in order to face the dreaded intruder. Once she realized who it was, however, her eyes narrowed into tiny jade slits filled to the brim with sheer emnity, her voice cool and crisp as she urged tartly, "Get the hell out of my apartment...._now!"  
  
_"Well fuck, Faye...is that any way to greet an old friend?," Spike teased, trying his best to ease the situation at hand. "Can you at least tell me why you ran off on such short notice? It was pretty rude of you to just leave without a trace like that."  
  
Faye stiffened. "I don't owe you any explanation for what I've done....especially since _you've_ never offered any to _me!"  
  
"Damn...she's right,"_ Spike realized, sighing deeply as he shoved his hands into his pants' pockets and took a small step forward. _"This won't be an easy battle, but I've just **got** to let her know how I feel about all this mess."  
  
_Faye, just then noticing how terribly close that Spike had become, urged frantically, "Stop where you are! If you don't, I'll...I'll slit my wrist! I _mean_ it, Spike! Back off!"  
  
He blanched. "What in God's name...?! _Faye!_ What the _hell_ do you think you're doing?!"  
  
"Trying to free myself from _you_ and all of the hells that you've single-handedly managed to put me through, _that's _what!," she spat, gradually backing up towards the balcony window as she threateningly placed the coruscating shard of glass over her wrist in a formidable fashion. "Face it, Spike, there's absolutely _nothing_ that you can do or say to convince me that I've got a lot to live for, so save your breath! I hate you! I....I _despise_ you, you disgusting sonofabitch!!!"  
  
Something within Spike's heart snapped in two the moment that she uttered those bitter, hate-filled words, a deep frown tugging at the corners of his lips as he returned scathingly, _"Yeah?_ Well did you ever think that maybe_ I _hated _you?"  
  
_Faye blinked, her eyebrows knitting together in utter confusion. "I-I don't understand....why should _you_ hate me whenever the only wrong that I've ever committed was loving you?!"  
  
Spike let out a bitter laugh, returning coldly, "Oh, Faye...._poor,_ foolish Faye. You probably have no idea that I hate you like nothing else in this universe...primarily for seducing me yesterday evening and forcing me to denounce my purity of only making love to Julia. You're very beautiful, I'll give you that much, but me, being the currently extremely horny bastard that I was, gave in to my dissatisfied lust and allowed myself to be taken over by your charms. You see, Faye, you're not the _only_ one who has regrets from that night. The way I see it, the whole damn thing was just one huge mistake that can't be taken back."  
  
Faye gasped, her heart splitting in two directly down the center as she suddenly dropped the shard of glass to the floor within a moment of sudden shock.  
  
_"He hates me,"_ she realized, beginning to tremble as she cast her bleary gaze down to her bare feet in anguish. _"I didn't mean what I said...I was just overreacting! Oh, God....he thinks that our lovemaking was just........a **mistake**!"  
_**************************************************************************************************************************  
"Oh, my God, those are _so_ fake," Katy commented to herself as she continued to watch the large-breasted woman on the TV screen prance across a beautiful sandy beach in nothing but a bikini that was obviously two sizes too small for her ridiculously oversized boobs.  
  
Rolling her eyes at this, Katy immediately changed the channel to a hot, steamy love scene, praising enthusiastically, "Alright, _here_ we go! The sex may be just as fake as that whore's huge nungas, but at least it's much more tasteful and believable."  
  
Just as she began to get engrossed with the intense making out and groping of the moaning couple, however, the phone rang and startled her back to the boring reality of Earthling life.  
  
Muttering a few choice words under her breath, Katy got up from the comfort of the couch and retrieved the phone from off of its cradle, questioning coolly into the receiver, "Y'lo?"  
  
_"Miss Brewer?,"_ came the coarse reply.  
  
"Who wants to know?," she demanded, raising an eyebrow as she tried her damndest to recognize any source of familiarity within the caller's voice. "If this is a telemarketer, you can go ahead and shove your vacuum, or whatever the hell it is that you're selling up your ass!"  
  
A low chuckle greeted her rather rude response before the man insisted darkly, _"No, I can assure you that I do **not** sell vacuums, or any other commodity, Miss Brewer. I did, however, call in order to verify your permission that I can pick something up from your apartment."  
  
_"Like _what?,"_ Katy demanded, growing suspicious.  
  
The man just merely chuckled, acknowledging with apparent amusement, _"Why **you**, of course."  
  
_"Who are you?!," Katy shrieked, by this point well beyond the norm of her typical level of paranoia. _"Where_ are you?!"  
  
There was a brief pause, then yet another chuckle before the man returned smugly, _"Right behind you."  
_**************************************************************************************************************************  
Electra had been terribly aloof ever since their intimate moment back at the warehouse, and Davis knew it. He feared that she had possibly changed her mind about him and decided to just string him along and keep him guessing for her benefit.  
  
_"No,"_ he contradicted inwardly, _"she wouldn't do that to me."_  
  
"Which room belongs to Faye and Katy?," Electra suddenly demanded, thus causing him to snap out of his reverie and back to reality.  
  
Taking a brief glance about the hall, Davis acknowledged disorientedly, "Uh....room 202. C'mon...this way."  
  
Electra followed her comrade wordlessly and, as soon as they had reached the room, she authoratively pushed him out of the way and immediately took charge.  
  
"Katy?," she called, rapping upon the door until her knuckles began to turn a slight pinkish color. _"Katy?_ It's a friend of Davis'....._please_ open up!"  
  
_"Did she just say **friend**?,"_ Davis wondered irately, his heart feeling as if it had just entered a gigantic blender and was being ripped to shreds like a mangled pile of rags. _"Well I'll be a horse's ass! That babe's just **so** fuckin' confusing! **Argh**!"  
  
_"Davis...Katy's not answering," Electra announced, thus causing him to redirect his attention back towards the more important situation at hand. "Do you think she's away somewhere?"  
  
He shook his head. "Not a chance. Katy's not trusted with shopping, or _anything_, for that matter, since she's so damn klutzy. She's awful cute and all, but _man_ do her fingers contain a lotta butter!"  
  
"Stand back," Electra suddenly urged, retrieving her firearm from within her hipholster and leveling it out before her. "Things could get pretty ugly in there."  
  
Nodding in agreement, Davis immediately did as he was told, watching on with awe and admiration as Electra reared back and struck the door knob with the iron-clad heel of her steel-toed boot, the impact of her sudden action causing the door to swing open and bang against the wall with a dull, reverberating 'thunk'.  
  
Immediately rushing into the room with her firearm poised securely in front of her, Electra gasped, exclaiming urgently at the top of her lungs, "Davis! Come quick....it's _Katy!"  
_   
He gasped, stumbling within the threshold like a bull in a china closet before resting his gaze upon his fair lover, her tall, lanky figure resting limply upon the carpeted floor with a telephone lying conveniently by her frail, outstretched hand, a low groan eliciting its way forth from her rosy lips as she squeaked, _"Davis........**my God**....."  
  
_"Try not to talk!," he urged, immediately rushing over to her side and lifting her languid being up into the security of his strong arms. "Electra....go call an ambulance...._now!"  
  
_At first she just stood there but, as soon as she was about to comply to his wishes, Electra suddenly noticed something yellow and slightly furled resting upon the table that the telephone had once been atop of.  
  
"Davis....what is that?," she demanded, pointing warily over towards what appeared to be a piece of paper from his point of view.  
  
Briefly abandoning Katy's resting form in order to check it out, Davis retrieved the parchment and opened it up, his handsome features instantly hardening the moment that he uttered the one name that acted like a bitter, deadly toxin upon his tongue: _"Derek."  
_**************************************************************************************************************************  
"What are you doing?! _Stay away from me!"  
  
_Spike grunted in frustration. "Faye, quit being such a goddamned psycho and get away from that glass on the floor!"  
  
"Not until _you_ get away from _me!,"_ she retorted, immediately snatching one of the sharpest shards off of the carpet and staggering back up to her feet. "If you take another step closer, I'll kill myself, Spike, and this time I _mean_ it!"  
  
Spike frowned, his beautiful two-toned eyes narrowing as he stalked towards her with a firm determination unlike any that she had ever seen in him before.  
  
Her feet gradually scuffling backwards due to her fear of her persistant pursuer, Faye cried out the moment that she lost her footing and plummeted through the delicate glass, her body falling out upon the cement balcony with a tremendous crash that was followed by a shower of glimmering shards and scarlet as the rain continued to pelt her relentlessly from above.  
  
"Faye!," Spike exclaimed, immediately rushing through the shattered balcony window and to her side. _"Faye!_ Can you hear me?!"  
  
_"Get away.......from me, you....bastard,"_ she groaned, trying her best to ignore the intense throbbing throughout her entire body as her white nightgown continued to absorb the diamond-like rain droplets that still came cascading down from the Heavens.  
  
Spike couldn't help but notice this, as well, his cheeks burning a delicate hue of crimson once he noticed her tingling nipples slightly peeking through the thin, transparent cloth, his thoughts immediately urging his lower body to behave as he tried his best to control himself at the time being.   
  
"Fuck, Faye....why do you always do this to me?," he asked aloud, hoping for some sort of response that he could actually understand. "Is this how you get your kicks? By torturing poor 'ol Spike?"  
  
Suddenly, without warning, Faye retrieved her Glock from within her black, lacy panties, which Spike had miraculously not taken any notice to, and leveled it out between his pair of shocked, mismatched eyes.   
  
Frowning deeply, she urged in a determined whisper, _"Don't move."_  
  
  
**A/N:** Will Faye shoot Spike???? No! There will be a LEMON, instead! ::blush:: I know, heh. -.-' Seems kinda weird, but oh, wellz....I needed to focus the story back on SxF again, but it was kinda hard to do so since I've been tying up loose ends and whatnot. **PLEASE** R&R, though, cuz I'm not sure if it's getting any better or not! =( lol Thank yas! ^^ Luv ya bunches! ^,~  
3 Kendra Luehr   
  



	10. The Eye of the Storm Has Lifted

  
  
**A/N:** Heeeey! ^^ lol I hope that this chappie meets to everyone's liking! ^^ It's kinda sad in a sense...SxF-wise, but don't worry, their relationships GOTTA have bumps in order for it to work out! ^^ lol Please R&R, and of course...ENJOY! ^,~  
  
  
  
  
The kiss was long. Faye had absolutely no idea how she had gotten herself into this situation in the first place, but Spike had somehow managed to swipe the gun from her outstretched hand and pin her down beneath him with a swiftness that only he possessed.  
  
"Get off me," Faye warned, struggling violently beneath him with the hopes of somehow squirming loose as he continued to hold her firmly in place with his hips. "Dammit, Spike...I _said_ get _off_ me!"  
  
_"No,"_ he returned huskily, his lips now at her ear as he clenched her breasts firmly within his hands and lightly suckled at her fluttering pulse.  
  
Faye inwardly kicked herself as a soft moan escaped her lips, Spike's strong arms lifting her up into his warm embrace before he carried her through the destruction of the balcony window and over towards her bed with an ever-present smirk upon his thin lips.  
  
"Put me _down!,"_ Faye growled, kicking and screaming as her captive continued to hold her tightly within his iron-like grasp. "I _mean_ it, Spike! Put me down, _now!"  
  
_He smirked, acknowledging smugly, "As you wish, my dear."  
  
Letting out a cry full of absolute surprise, Faye grabbed ahold of his suit jacket as she came plummeting down towards the bed, thus taking him down with her amidst a mass of severe confusion.  
  
Spike smirked at this, announcing slyly, "Why Faye, I didn't know that you were _this_ eager to get me into bed again."  
  
"Why, you...._you-"  
  
_He immediately cut her off, his warm, thin lips devouring her own as she fought to breathe, her heart pounding against his broad chest as his lips suddenly left her own and lightly ghosted down along her chin, neck, and to the swell of her ample breasts.  
  
_"Spike,"_ Faye gasped, her brilliant jade eyes closing in sheer rapture as his lips continued to lathe her body with their rich sweetness, his manhood feeling like steel the moment that he pressed against her and let out a deep, throaty moan as his indirect plea for her acceptance.  
  
_"Faye,"_ he rasped, "please let me hold you........_just for tonight."  
  
_She gazed up into his mismatched eyes and felt tears beginning to prick along her long, kohl lashes, her voice soft and wavering as she questioned apprehensively, "D-do you love me, then?"  
  
Spike didn't answer, his lips immediately invading the crook of her neck as he began to lift her drenched nightgown up and over her head, the tears now cascading freely down along her porcelain doll-like cheeks as she tried again, "Do you _love_ me, Spike?"  
  
_"Please,"_ he begged against the soft flesh of her neck, "let's not say anything now that we may regret later."  
  
His words were like a slap to the face, Faye's delicate heart breaking to the point of no recovery as she numbly felt Spike continue to use her for his own perverse pleasures, the moist warmth of his tongue forcefully pushing past her soft, rosy lips and within her mouth to the point that she felt as if she were about to gag, his nimble fingers hurriedly undressing himself as she continued to lie there within her tremendous aura of self-pity and wept like a lost, frightened child.  
  
Now that they were both completely naked and vulnerable to one another, Faye started to tremble like a leaf as Spike began to place warm, passionate kisses upon her flat stomach and every once in a while dart his tongue within the tiny depths of her navel, each time receiving a sharp buck below him from his partially unwilling partner.  
  
Smirking at her involuntary actions, Spike suddenly disappeared beneath the covers, Faye biting her lip and tightly gripping the sheets as she felt him assault her womanhood with his tongue, her legs instinctively wrapping about his head as she choked on a moan and thrust her chest outward in utter delectation.  
  
No matter what Faye was feeling at the moment, however, she was overall completely disgusted at how she could so easily be repeled and attracted to this man at the same time, her emotions now overwhelming her to the point of near suffocation as she tugged at her partner's hair and begged for him to stop.  
  
_"No,"_ Spike denied firmly, his lips glistening with her sweet nectar as he took one of her hard nipples within his mouth and began to suckle, his voice heated and raspy as he continued in a muffled monotone, "I want you too much to just stop now, Faye...._way_ too much."  
  
She shook her head at this in utter mortification, a soft whimper escaping her lips the moment that he caressed her between the legs and carefully inserted two of his long, slender fingers within her wet entrance, her hips gradually lifting up off of the mattress to meet with the relentless thrusts of his digits, her voice cracking as she begged in a voice barely above a whisper, _"Please,_ Spike...no more. I _beg_ of you!"  
  
"You're right," he suddenly agreed, smirking. "Enough with the fingering....let's just move on to the _real thing."  
  
_Faye gasped. "Oh, no....please, Spike.....I-_oh, GOD!!!"  
  
_She couldn't finish, for he had already penetrated her to the point of no return, her vocals screaming bloody murder as he continued to pump rigorously in and out of her with all that he had, the ferocity of each stroke reminding her very much of the ministrations of a wild animal.  
  
Letting out a terrified whimper, Faye felt Spike explode within her, his tall, lanky body tensing up against her own before he collapsed languidly atop her weary being, his hot pants scorching her flesh as they both felt the sensation of the rising and falling of their bodies against one another before they both began to wordlessly wait for it all to gently ebb away into nothingness.  
  
Lying there amidst the afterglow of their savage lovemaking, Faye held Spike close to her as she mournfully reflected within her mind, _"Even if you'll never love me after all we've been through, Spike, I at least have this horrid little incident to believe that it might actually be true....even though that just meant for a little while."  
_**************************************************************************************************************************  
"You love her, don't you?"  
  
Davis blanched. _"Excuse_ me?"  
  
"Katy...do you love her?," Electra clarified, staring blankly ahead of them at the tacky off-white hospital walls as they both continued to sit there anxiously within the waiting room. "I can sense these things....I think you love her."  
  
Davis gave her a funny look, then shook his head, insisting rather sharply, "Now _look,_ Electra, it's real swell and all that you came along, but I seriously don't need this shit right now."  
  
"I'm sorry," she apologized earnestly, her olive green eyes glistening with unshed tears as she continued, "i-it's just that I can completely understand what you're going through, you know? I mean, first Vincent....and now Jet...."  
  
_"Vincent?,"_ Davis reiterated, now terribly confused. "Who's he?"  
  
Electra smiled sadly. "A piece of my past that I'd rather keep buried, if you don't mind. When he died, a large part of my heart went with him. He was my first love.....my first _lover."  
  
_"Oh," Davis returned softly, suddenly terribly embarrassed for intruding. "I'm really sorry....I didn't mean-"  
  
"It's ok," she cut in, immediately glancing off towards the nearby window in order to escape his unwavering gaze. "It's Katy whom we should be thinking about...._not_ Vincent."  
  
"Yeah," Davis agreed, nodding. "I'm really worried about her. The doctor says that she'll be out and gettin' on with her normal routine in no time, but I...I just don't know."  
  
Electra suddenly stood up, her gaze lowering towards the floor as she returned softly, "I know that this is abrupt and all, but I really_ should_ get going.....it's getting late, so I'll see you later, maybe?"  
  
"You going back to the headquarters?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Then definitely," Davis assured her, forcing a small, tired smile to cross his lips. "I'll see you in thirty."  
  
Electra's gaze suddenly softened, her lips gradually curving upward into a small smile, as well, before she leaned over and gave him a gentle kiss upon his cheek, urging good-naturedly, "Take care of yourself, Davis....I'll see you later."  
  
Watching after her as she turned to leave he gulped, his deep brown eyes ogling the way her black pants clung to her hips as he managed to squeak out a pitiful good-bye in return, his troubled thoughts magically lifting up off of his shoulders due to that single hope-inducing kiss.  
**************************************************************************************************************************  
_"My God......what have I done?"  
  
_Gazing down upon Faye's peaceful, sleeping facade, Spike began to tremble, shaking his head in utter disgust as he realized inwardly, _"I raped her........I fucking **raped** her! My God, I really AM a monster! How could I do that to her?! She trusted me, and I-I just allowed myself to ravage her body as if she were mine for the taking! That's it....I can't take this, anymore....I need to get back to the headquarters!"  
  
_Carelessly stumbling out of bed, Spike wordlessly seized his wrinkled clothes from off of the floor and began to slip them on, his guilty conscience constantly reminding him of the emotionally torn woman lying in bed behind him until he felt that he were about to burst.  
  
Immediately retrieving the pen and pad of paper that hotels always provide, he shakily sat down at the little chair beside the bed and wrote:  
  
  
_Faye-  
I know that this won't be easy for you to accept, but I am truly sorry for what I have done to you. I took advantage of the fact that there was a beautiful young woman in my presence and acted upon it. Foolishly, I might add. I'm returning to the Red Dragon headquarters now, and, since you're my friend, you're more than welcome to come along, but I figured that after what happened between us you'd never want to see my face again. Before you ball this up and pitch it in the trash, however, please try not to think of me as a monster, but as your comrade.  
-Spike  
  
  
  
  
_ Setting the note back down upon the bed table, Spike took one last long look at Faye, then sighed, his heart seemingly laden with lead as he grabbed his jacket off of the chair and headed on over towards the door, by this point absolutely positive that he would never lay his eyes on his irascible companion again.  
**************************************************************************************************************************  
Slipping out of her hot, sweaty work clothes, Electra let out a sigh full of pure gratification once the warm beads of water sprayed forth from the shower head and beat down upon her worn, weary body, her olive green eyes closing in sheer delight as she allowed herself to get lost in the wonderful sensation of a nice shower with the hopes of possibly escaping the hells of the past few days; even if that only meant for just a few minutes.  
  
Running her hands throughout her short, puce-colored bob, Electra suddenly stopped, her eyes widening in absolute shock as she pulled a small object forth from behind her ear, realizing aloud, "Oh, my God....a tracking device! How the _fuck...?!"  
  
_Immediately breaking the mechanism in half, she tossed it off to the side and took a slight step back, her senses now high and on the alert as she paused and listened.  
  
_Nothing.  
_   
_"Ok, Electra....just **calm** down. It's nothing to worry about,"_ she assured herself, trying her best to cease her shallow breathing as she continued to hear nothing but the plinking of the water that was continuously assaulting her body. _"Derek probably just planted that thing on me some time during out last meeting and I didn't notice. Surely I broke it before he could get to me. Yeah....that's-"  
  
**BAM!**_   
  
Electra cried out in absolute shock, finding now that her body was wedged in between the wall and a man whom she didn't recognize that was garbed completely in black.  
  
Flicking out a switchblade and placing it balefully against the soft, tanned flesh of her cheek, he urged hoarsely, _"Don't move a fuckin' muscle."  
  
  
  
****_A/N: ::coughs:: Okaaay, was that alright??? lol I hope so! . Heh -.-' I apologize for the whole raping thing, but I just thought that it'd be interesting if I took a different approach on their relationship since I always seem to make them all....::siiiigh:: we're in LOVE! Ya know? LoL Heh -.-' Hopefully not THAT cornily (is that even a word? o.O) Hahaha....welp, please read & review (it means the world to me! =P)! Luv ya bunches! ^,~  
3 Kendra Luehr 


	11. All Isn't Fair In Love and War

_  
  
  
****_A/N: Hey, guys! I just want you to know that this chapter may shock and surprise you, but I hope that you won't kill me and that you'll R&R, and of course...ENJOY! ^,~ LoL_  
  
  
  
  
"Who are you?"  
  
_The man smirked, returning dryly, "Considering the current situation, babe, I'd say that you're in no fuckin' position to be askin' any questions."  
  
_"Bull shit!,"_ Electra spat, rapidly gaining courage as she began to struggle about within her captor's iron-like grasp. "I think that I have the right to know what the hell you're doing here and what you have planned for me!"  
  
The man chuckled, agreeing coyly, "Fair enough, babe...I'm here to bring you to Derek. I _do,_ however, have a few _other_ things in mind, right about now."  
  
Electra bristled the moment that his gloved fingers ran along the curve of her hip, her leg immediately flailing backwards and kicking him directly in the groin.  
  
Doubling over like a dead-weight, the man cursed brusquely under his breath as Electra escaped his taut grasp and leapt out of the tub, only to immediately feel his hand grip her tightly about the ankle and hold her firmly in place.  
  
No longer able to support herself, Electra cried out in utter astonishment, her body toppling over headfirst before she cracked her skull against the side of the sink and entered the frightening world of darkness and repose.  
**************************************************************************************************************************  
"So where's that tall, lanky fella that spent the night with you?"  
  
Faye glared daggers at the desk clerk whom had addressed her as she handed him her room's card key, returning crisply, "My business is _none_ of yours. If you have any sense of propriety, whatsoever, you'll let me leave without asking anymore goddamned questions!"  
  
The desk clerk blanched. "I-I'm _real_ sorry, miss....it's just that I get mighty worried about beautiful young women who're alone in these parts. Earth's not a very safe place, ya know."  
  
"Yeah," Faye returned bitterly. "I _know._ Why _else_ do you think I'm leaving this Godforsaken hellhole?"  
  
The desk clerk eyed her in a scrutinizing manner for a brief moment, then shrugged it off, prying absently, "You leavin' to chase after that fella? T'ain't too wise, miss. He might not want you, anymore."  
  
"Shut up!," Faye suddenly screeched, by this point well beyond having had all that she could take. "My sex life is _none_ of your business! I-I appreciate your concern, and all, but _please_ just leave me alone!"  
  
Before he could even reply, she was gone, tears streaming freely down along her pale, satin sheeks as she ran in hot pursuit of the shuttle station with the hopes of actually escaping her pain and finding a future; somewhere to _belong._  
**************************************************************************************************************************  
Her eyes gently fluttering open, Electra gradually came to realize that her captor had had the decency to re-clothe her body, her gaze suddenly narrowing once a familiar man happened to enter the room.  
  
_"Derek."  
_   
"Electra," he acknowledged, smirking with obvious amusement. "It's _so_ very good to see you again, my dear."  
  
"Wish I could say the same," she returned coldly, her olive green eyes simmering over with sheer hatred as she shakily sat up and turned to face him. "If you brought me here to tell you where Spike is, you're wasting your time. I _don't_ know where he is, and I never have."  
  
Derek smirked. "No, actually....this time I'm _not_ interested in the whereabouts of Mr. Spiegel. It's that Mr. Holland fellow that intrigues me at the moment."  
  
Electra paled. _"Davis?_ But _why?"  
  
_"Because I want him dead...._that's _why!," Derek thundered, immediately turning on her in an instant. "That filth made a fool of me, Electra, and I don't allow rookies like him to get away with it!"  
  
"But that's _ridiculous!,"_ she argued, now trying her best not to reveal how terribly frightened she had become. "Everyone gets shown up at least once in their lives, Derek.....so _deal _with it!"_  
  
_He snorted. "Electra, my dear, you are _so_ naive. Have you forgotten what an important role Davis plays in Mr. Spiegel's life? If we wipe him out, just _think_ of the possibilities!"  
  
"Excuse me...._we?,"_ Electra interjected, desperately hoping that she had heard otherwise.  
  
"That's right...._we,"_ Derek acknowledged, grinning broadly from ear-to-ear. "I'll come up with the execution plan, and then you'll carry it out. We'll be an unbeatable team."  
  
"You sick bastard," Electra commented in a voice barely above a whisper, her eyes blazing into his own like two fiery embers as she dared to take a sudden step forward. "I will _never_ work by your side......_ever."  
  
_Derek smirked. "Oh, but I think you _will."  
  
_"Why?"  
  
"Because I have your family," he elucidated dryly, thus causing her to stiffen on impulse. "If you don't do as I ask, I will kill each and every single last one of those sniveling bastards right in front of your eyes."  
  
Electra began to tremble at this, her iron visage quickly collapsing due to the terrible predicament laid out before her, her voice soft and defeated as she questioned dejectedly, "What do you need me to do, then?"_  
  
_Derek just merely smirked in return, fore he had won.  
**************************************************************************************************************************  
"Hey."  
  
"Oh!," Katy exclaimed, immediately whirling around in order to receive her caller, but not before, however, she could stop the portable coat rack from toppling over and onto it's side. _"Shit."  
  
_Davis smirked. "It's ok....I always seem to have that sort of effect over women. It's just a gift, I guess."  
  
"You think you're _real_ cute, don't you?," Katy teased, smirking as he stooped over in order to help her pick up the slight mess. "I _do,_ however, appreciate you stopping by."  
  
"Well when I heard that you were being released from the hospital, I had to," he admitted, blushing slightly.  
  
"Oh?"  
  
Davis swallowed. "Yeah, well...ya see......I-I've been thinkin' a lot about you lately, and your little accident made me realize how much I'd miss you if were to...._you know...._leave me, or something. I guess what I'm trying to say is....well.....I love you, Katy."  
  
"Oh, Davis!," she wailed, tears welling up within her shimmering hazel eyes as she leapt forward and wrapped her arms about his form in utter adoration. "I-I love you, too, and-oh, _God,_ I thought you'd never say this to me! I was just _so_ sure that you had feelings for Electra!"  
  
Davis smiled into the crook of her neck, returning warmly, "Not anymore....she was the one, however, that made me realize how much I truly care about you."  
  
_"Really?,"_ Katy questioned, beaming as she gazed up into her lover's eyes with sheer euphoria.  
  
"Well, I-"  
  
_Brrring.  
  
_"Hang on a sec," Davis urged, much to Katy's chagrin, "I've gotta take this call....it could be important."  
  
Parting from his lover and lifting his cell phone up to his ear, he acknowledged professionally, "Hello? Holland, speaking.....whatcha need?"  
  
_"Davis?"  
  
_"Electra?," he returend, quieting his voice slightly with the hopes that Katy could no longer overhear him. "What's wrong? You sound troubled."  
  
"I am," she acknowledged, trying her best to mask the slight tremor within her voice as she took a deep, cleansing breath. "I-I need your help.....I was just about to make a surprise attack on Derek since I found out his location and all, but I then decided that I needed some reinforcements. I'm terribly sorry for any inconvenience on your behalf, but do you think that you could possibly help me out?"  
  
Davis nodded. "Of course.....where are you?"  
  
"The hospital's rooftop, as incredibly weird as that sounds. Come up here by yourself for your own secrecy and protection."  
  
"Got it. I'm on my way," Davis acknowledged, hurriedly hanging up before pocketing his cell phone and turning to Katy in a flash. "Katy, I've got to go to the rooftop....no questions asked. Will you be alright here by yourself?"  
  
"Well _yes,_ but-"  
  
"Good.....I'll be back soon. Love ya," Davis immediately interjected, giving her a quick kiss before bolting towards the door and leaving his lover standing there in a state of absolute shock.  
  
_"Well what on earth could be so damned important that made him leave me like that?,"_ Katy wondered, cocking her head to the side as she subconsciously scratched her head in utter confusion. _"Well one thing's for sure...**nothing** takes anything from Katy M. Brewer, so I'm gonna go after him and bring him back!"  
_**************************************************************************************************************************  
"Electra...I got here as fast as I could....where are the other reinforcements?!"  
  
Electra bowed her head in shame, absolutely refusing to face her comrade as she returned softly, "There _are_ no reinforcements, Davis....this was all just a big set-up in order to get you up here."  
  
_"Huh?_ What the hell are you _talking_ about?," Davis demanded, terribly confused. "What's going on?!"  
  
"I'm sorry, Davis," Electra returned sorrowfully, her hand shaking like gelatin as she retrieved her gun from within her hip-holster and whipped around so that it was now aimed directly between his eyes. "I wish that things didn't have to be this way......_really,_ I do."  
  
Davis blanched, his limbs trembling as he felt as if his legs were about to give out from beneath him, his voice cracking slightly as he managed to choke, "W-what's this all about Electra? I-I-I don't _understand!_ What's going on?!"  
  
"Derek made a proposition with me which entitled the exchange of your life for my family's, so I had no choice other than to accept. I am _so_ sorry....believe me...I _don't_ want to do this," she insisted, tremulously clicking back the hammer to her revolver as she miraculously managed to look him in the eye. "Please forgive me for what I must do, Davis....._please."  
  
_"Electra-"  
  
_"Good-bye, Davis,"_ she breathed in interruption, squeezing her eyes shut as she shakily pulled back on the trigger and awaited their unforeseen fates.  
  
_BANG!  
  
_Choking on his own blood, Davis collapsed admist a burst of copious scarlet, Electra beginning to tremble upon seeing him as she realized aloud, "I killed him......oh, my _God,_ I fucking _killed_ him!!!"  
  
"Electra, I-oh, my _GOD!!! _What did you _do?!!"  
  
_Electra gasped, whirling around in order to intercept the intruder, Katy's large eyes filled with such pain and woe upon seeing her fallen lover that Electra felt as if her own heart were being ripped out, instead, as she watched the young woman run over to Davis' side and throw herself upon him in sheer agony.  
  
"Katy.....I-"  
  
_"No!,"_ she screamed, "don't you _dare_ say anything to me, you murderous bitch! I hope that Davis' life is enough to satisfy your sick lust for blood, because now he's _dead!_ You hear me?! _DEAD!!!"  
  
"No,"_ Electra denied softly, tears beginning to prick along her long, kohl lashes as she shook her head back and forth in denial, _"NO!"  
  
"Yes!,"_ Katy shrieked in response, her eyes glimmering over with a lust for vengeance as she suddenly stood up from her lover's body and held out her hand. "Give me your gun."  
  
Electra paled. "My...._gun?"  
  
_"Yes....your _gun!,"_ Katy repeated shrilly, by this point hiccuping amidst her tears. _"Please,_ Electra! I need it!"  
  
"Very well," she agreed, reluctantly holding it out for her ex-comrade to take. "If you wish to kill me, then please do. I know for a God-given fact that you won't accept my apology, so that's the next best thing."  
  
Katy wordlessly snatched the gun from Electra's outstretched hand and began to tremble, her gaze firm and unwavering as she brought it up before her and leveled it out.  
  
_"Oh, God forgive me,"_ Electra breathed, closing her eyes in order to prepare herself for the unknown that laid ahead. _"**Please** forgive me."  
  
BANG!  
  
_Electra braced herself, but was completely thrown off-guard the moment that she realized that she had not been shot.  
  
Warily opening her eyes she gasped, her heart splitting directly down the center once she laid her eyes upon the sight unfolding before her.  
  
There, lying a top Davis' lifeless body was Katy, a small, eerie smile that appeared to show that she was now at peace plastered upon her lips and leaving behind a cold, frigid sensation that chilled Electra's guilty conscience to the very bone.  
  
  
**A/N:** ::coughs:: Yeah, I liked Katy and Davis, too, but I had to end the love triangle SOMEhow, right??? LoL I also MAJORLY apologize for having like no Spike/Faye, whatsoever, but I promise that from here on out it's ALL about them! Until then, please review! It means SO much to me! ^_^ Luv ya bunches! ^,~  
3 Kendra Luehr  



	12. Reopening Old Wounds

_  
_**A/N:** Hey, guys! Wow, this took practically FOREVER to come up with, cuz...well...let's just say that it's getting harder and harder to get a chapter out every week, heh. -.-' For that, I apologize. Anyways, I truly hope that you enjoy this since it took so long to get out, so now, without further adieu, it's ch 12! =-D R&R, please! ,_  
  
"Miss Ovilo, there's a call for you on line twelve."  
  
_Kathryn Ovilo sighed deeply, her roguish green eyes flickering upwards towards the heavens as she reached for her office phone, punching in the button before answering as warmly as she could possibly muster, "Hello? Kathryn Ovilo from Bueford Enterprises, speaking."  
  
_"Kathy?_ It's Electra.....thank _God_ you're alright, I-"  
  
_"Electra?!,"_ Kathryn reiterated, her eyes widening in utter astonishment as she was suddenly consumed by the terrible urge to kill someone. "What the _hell_ are you doing?! I-I thought I told you to never call me _again!"  
  
_"Yes, yes, I know, but as your sister I felt that it was my duty to make sure that your ass was safe from harm," Electra returned haughtily, immediately feeling old wounds gradually being re-opened. "One of my past associates from Cherios Medical informed me that he had you and Jazz as his captives and, since you're my only family, it was urgent that I call you."  
  
Kathryn raised an eyebrow. "Electra, what in God's name are you _talking_ about?! Your daughter and I are _fine!"  
  
"What?,"_ Electra choked, her heart seeming to suddenly stop as she swayed slightly towards the wall of her hotel room in a state of absolute nausea. "You mean....he-"  
  
_"Yes,"_ Kathryn interjected tartly, "he _lied._ Are you through now, Electra? I really need to get going."  
  
She trembled, then nodded, returning softly, "Yes.....q-quite through."   
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"Thank you for letting me know, Dr. Lang."  
  
"You're his only associate....it was my duty," he returned firmly, his dark, twinkling eyes boring into the mismatched pair before him like two red-hot pokers as he jingled with the keys to the hospital room and stiffly inserted them into the lock. "If you're as much of a friend to this man as you claim to be, however, you won't breathe one word about that young woman that was with him, you hear?"  
  
The mossy green-haired man bowed his head. "Yeah.....I hear."  
  
"Good," Dr. Lang returned curtly. "You may go in now, Mr. Spiegel."  
  
Subconsciously taking in a deep breath, Spike cautiously entered the room, inwardly cringing upon witnessing the bloody sight that played out before him.  
  
_"Davis?,"_ he finally managed to choke, taking a slight step forward.  
  
The young man didn't reply, his typically vibrant brown eyes now dull and lifeless as he rasped in return, "Katy.....where is she? I want to see her."  
  
"Davis..."  
  
"Where _is_ she?," he repeated, now a little more frantic. "Please don't tell me that she left and returned to the headquarters without me!"  
  
Spike swallowed heavily. "Uh, no....sh-she didn't."  
  
"Oh, thank _God,"_ Davis breathed, relaxing once more as he allowed his head to drop back against the pillow and sink deep within its massive softness, a small smile playing upon his thin lips as he continued, "now, if you don't mind, Spike-O, do ya think that you could ask her to come in and see me? I got some sweet nothings that I wanna whisper in her ear."  
  
Spike didn't move.  
  
_"Spike?_ Hey, you ok in there?," Davis questioned, now taking note of his comrade's obvious aberrant behavior. _"Spike?_ Dude, what is _with_ you?! Where's Katy?!! _Dammit,_ Spike...._answer me!!!"  
  
_"She's dead, _alright?!_ Is _that_ what you fucking wanted me to say?!!," Spike finally spat in return, his face reddening with his sudden burst of outrage as he threw his hands up into the air and snatched at the tangly mass of green upon his head. "I didn't wanna tell you, Davis, but since you wanted the blunt truth, you damn well got it, so _don't_ take this out on me!!!"  
  
Davis blanched. "Y-you're a fucking liar!"  
  
"Look, I didn't want to hurt you, I-"  
  
_"LIAR!!!"  
  
_"Davis, _no,_ I-"  
  
"Jesus Christ...I said that I don't believe you, so take your flippin' lies elsewhere!," Davis growled, the thin green line on his heart rate monitor rapidly ascending as he suddenly shot up in bed and stared his comrade down amidst his deep emnity. "Get the fuck out, you lying shit! Just.....just get_ out!!!"  
  
_Spike blanched. "Davis, you're not being rational! Before you go even _more_ AWOL on me, I think you should know that I'm _not_ making this up! You're my friend, Davis.....I would never intentionally hurt you."  
  
Davis wordlessly gazed up into his comrade's apathetic eyes, his shoulders shaking as the realization of his lover's death suddenly dawned on him like a slap to the face.   
  
"Damn," he commented, "she really _is_ gone....._isn't she?"  
  
_Spike nodded solemnly.  
  
"Damn....oh, _damn,"_ Davis swore brusquely under his breath, his warm brown eyes filling up with tears that absolutely refused to be shed as he cast his glistening gaze back down towards his bed sheets in utter dismay. "What am I gonna do without her, Spike? She was my life......my reason for living."  
  
"I know how you feel," Spike returned softly, memories of his fair Julia rapidly resurfacing and nailing him viciously in the heart like a bed of pins and needles. "Julia........she was everything to me. I'd never met anyone in my life who had made me feel so alive.........so _complete._ When she was stolen from my clutches, she took a large part of me with her that I may never be able to get back. I don't really care anymore, though, cuz since _she_ has it, I'd like to think that at least _some_ part of me will finally live in true happiness."  
  
Davis sighed. "I never really told you how sorry I am about that, man.....Julia was a real swell gal. Whenever I started off as a rookie, she showed me the ropes and took me under her wing before you decided to become my master. I-I hate to admit this to you since you were her main squeeze and all, but I ended up falling in love with that sad, beautiful face of hers. You were really lucky, Spike."  
  
He smiled sadly. "Yeah....._I know."_   
  
"A-_hem."  
  
_The two young men turned in absolute astonishment, only to find Dr. Lang before them, his salt and pepper mustache twitching ever-so-slightly as he announced, "You have another visitor, Mr. Holland....a Miss Faye Valentine, I believe it was."  
  
Spike choked. "W-_what?_ Faye Valentine?! Are you _sure?!"  
  
"Positive,"_ a feminine, venemous voice hissed from abaft, the lovely owner not too far behind. "I merely came in order to check up on Davis and ask him if he'd be well enough to come with me to the double funeral today at Lancaster Cemetary. Electra called me over my cell a few hours ago and told me the terrible news.....nothing more."  
  
Spike frowned deeply. "Faye, _please...._I told you that I was sorry, I-"  
  
"We have _nothing_ more to discuss!," she spat, turning on him in an instant. "I thought that I could stay a while, but, seeing that _you're_ here and harrassing the hell out of me, it looks like I'll just have to go ahead and _leave!"  
  
_"Faye-"  
  
"Good-_bye,_ Spike.....Davis," she interrupted, giving the injured young man in bed a coquettish wink before flipping her other comrade the very unlady-like finger, her long, flowing skirt swishing about her ankles as she turned about on her heel in order to leave, Spike not too far behind._  
  
_"Faye!," he called frantically, hurriedly chasing after the haughty vixen, "Faye, _wait!_ Please let me explain what happened the other night!"  
  
"There is _nothing_ to explain, Spike! I will no longer be led on by your endless lies!!!," she seethed in response, thus causing him to stop dead in his tracks and give her a terribly pitiful look with his haunting two-toned irises.  
  
Receiving nothing but his unnerving gaze, she begged impuissantly, "Please don't look at me like that.....you know what your damned eyes do to me."  
  
"Faye....I'm _sorry,"_ Spike insisted, completely ignoring her question, altogether, as he took a slight step forward and firmly seized her by the arms. "Just let me talk to you....._please."  
  
_"I-"  
  
"Hey, you! _STOP!"  
  
_Shocked beyond all words of disbelief, the young couple turned around abruptly, only to find Dr. Lang running towards them at top speed, continuing hotly, "Get you hands off her, Mr. Spiegel....._NOW!!!"  
  
_"But I-"  
  
"It's the hospital's policy! _Unhand her!,"_ he growled, immediately seizing Spike by the arm and yanking him roughly away from his comrade in an instant of sheer outrage. "I hope that you learn from this, Mr. Spiegel. Now if you'll kindly come with me, I will show you out."  
  
Spike nodded in defeat, then turned slightly in order to face Faye, calling assuredly over his shoulder, "Don't you worry, Faye.....I'll find a way to talk to you......you can count on _that!"  
  
_Faye gasped, her body quivering uncontrollably as she watched after him in utter shock, her heart feeling as if it were being cut right out of her chest as she realized that he really, truly _would_ come for her, whether she liked it or not.  
  
888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888  
  
Garbed in nothing but a black gown and veil, Electra solemnly plodded along through the lush green grass of the Lancaster Cemetary, her heart heavy and laden with sheer guilt as she suddenly directed her gaze down upon the two caskets before her with teary eyes and allowed a slight shudder to escape her full, coral lips.  
  
_"Oh, Jet,"_ she breathed, _"I could have saved you if I had only returned earlier.....and Katy.......oh, **God**, I killed you in vain! I was deceived! Please forgive me, you two....**please**!!!"  
  
_"Electra?"  
  
She gasped, now completely thrown off guard as she whirled around in utter surprise, only to see Davis balanced precariously upon a pair of wooden crutches, Faye directly by his side and holding onto his arm with the apparent fear that he would fall.  
  
"D-Davis," she finally managed to choke in response, her guilty conscious far too full of shame to allow herself to look him in the eye. "Davis......I-I am _so_ sorry, I-"  
  
"Please don't," he begged, immediately looking away. "I really don't wanna talk about it right now."  
  
Electra gave him a pained look, then nodded, acknowledging meekly, "A-alright, I....I understand. I am, after all, your newfound enemy........._aren't I?"  
  
_"Well-"  
  
"Who _are_ you?," Faye suddenly interrupted, rudely staring the young woman before her down with a questioning glance. "How do you know Davis, and why are you asking whether you two would be enemies or not?"  
  
Electra frowned, returning tartly, "My, my....you _do_ love to ask questions, don't you? My business with Mr. Holland does _not_ concern you."  
  
_"Bullshit! _Davis' business is _every_ Red Dragon's business!," Faye spat in retalliation, her blood beginning to boil throughout her veins in strenuous bursts. "I've recently started living and working with them, so therefore it _is_ my duty to find out who the hell you are and why you know my comrade!!!"  
  
Electra blanched. "R-Red Dragons? As in.....Spike _Spiegel's_ Red Dragons?"  
  
Now it was Faye's turn to blanch, the color immediately draining away from her china doll-like cheeks as she finally managed to choke in a voice barely above a whisper, "H-how do you know Spike? He rarely makes close acquaintences."  
  
"We're _hardly_ close," Electra argued firmly, her eyes glazing over with an emotion that Faye could not quite yet decipher as the young woman before her crossed her arms beneath her breasts and bowed her head. "I met him during my search for my past lover, Vincent Volaju. Perhaps you've heard of him somewhere along the line."  
  
Faye bristled at the mentioning of that horrid man's name, her voice miraculously managing to stay stable as she returned crisply, "No....can't say that I have. What was your relationship with my comrade?"  
  
"Not one of a romantic nature, if that's what you mean. We were merely partners for a few hours in order to stop Vincent from destroying mankind, so there's no need to worry. Your boyfriend remained one hundred percent untouched," Electra assured her, smirking once the young woman blushed the color of a rose in full bloom. "What's wrong, Faye? You look......_sick."  
  
_Before Faye could reply, however, like she clearly wanted to do, Davis slapped a hand over her mouth and interrupted hotly, "C'mon, you two, cut it out! This is a cemetary, for God's sake, so show some respect!"  
  
Faye snorted at this, then nodded stiffly, pushing his hand away as she urged into his ear, "Let's go.....we should be leaving about now. The doctor said to bring you back by no later than three o'clock."  
  
He groaned, then sighed deeply before resigning softly, "Alright, _alright...._help me back to the car. Those damned chest pains are starting up again."  
  
Electra watched after the staggering couple in utter remorse, her heart heavy and swollen as she mournfully resolved that she would never see either of them again.  
88888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888  
  
Sighing, Faye wearily insterted her hotel key into her room door, her shoulders drooping as she suddenly wished that she hadn't spent the entire day with Davis.  
  
_"Boy, that man is more trouble than he's worth," _she reflected inwardly as she opened up the door and stepped inside. _"I'd never had to pay so much money for room service in my entire **life**!"  
  
_"Hello, Faye."  
  
She cried out, stumbling backwards until she slammed into the door, her heart constricting with sheer consternation as she breathed in acknowledgement, "Spike....w-what are you doing here? I thought we agreed to never see each other again!"  
  
He smirked, returning slyly, "Well don't you remember my little promise that I made this afternoon with you at the hospital? I _had_ to see you, Faye. So much, in fact, that I made Davis give me your room number and everything that I'd be needing to know. He's a swell guy, isn't he?"  
  
"Oooh, you _bastard!_ Did you ever think that maybe _I_ didn't want to see _you?!,"_ Faye spat in retalliation, her deep green eyes glinting over with her apparent emnity. "I want you to get out, Spike! _NOW!!!"  
  
_He frowned deeply. _"No way."  
  
"What did you just say?!"  
  
_"I said _no,_ dammit!," he growled, seizing her roughly by the upper arms before slamming her up against the door once more. "Now you are going to talk to me whether you like it or not! _Please,_ Faye.........._let me stay with you, tonight."_  
  
**A/N:** ::coughs:: Yep, that's right....adult situations in the next chappie, heh. -.-' That's what you dirty ppl were hoping for THIS time, weren't you??? LoL Gotcha, hahaha. Sorry if it was too short/sucky for your liking, lol. Please review it, anyway! =P I luv u guys! ,  
3 Kendra Luehr ==  



	13. After the Rain Comes the Sun

**  
  
A/N:** Hey, all my sweet, devoted reviewers whom have actually STUCK with me!!!!!! I've lost most of my reviewers!!! =( ::weeps piteously:: Welp...hopefully this chapter is the one that you've ALL been waiting for, if you get my drift. LoL , Please R&R, and of course....ENJOY! =-=  
  
**(Kimberley Locke & Clay Aiken's "Without You" plays) **

What is, exactly, the true meaning of love?  
  
It is used so commonly, from new, naive young couples who claim their "strong feelings" for one another, to an extreme affection for a morbid video game.  
  
And yet there Spike was, completely bearing his heart and soul to his comrade by uttering the three little words that she had so very much longed to hear from his lips, and yet now that they had been spoken, she no longer felt the joy within her heart that she had once thought that she would.  
  
In fact, it was quite the opposite. She found that she didn't believe him; period, amen. For all she knew, he was just trying to get into her pants like all the other times that she had foolishly given in to her lust.  
  
_"Well?,"_ Spike finally demanded, giving her a look full of extreme hurt. "Aren't you going to say anything?"  
  
Faye bit her lip, then immediately looked away, her voice pained and hushed as she urged softly, "Please don't lie to me, Spike.....if you are.....I-I just don't think that I could take it."  
  
He frowned deeply. Couldn't she see that he truly cared about her? That she was the very blood in his veins?  
  
"Spike....why are you staring at me like that?"  
  
He didn't answer her question, his artificial eye seeming to burn into her emerald orbs as he gingerly took her chin in his hand and tilted her head back, his lips immediately seeking her own in a desirous kiss that enveloped them both within a velvety aura of intense lust and passion.  
  
A low moan full of gratitude escaped the back of Faye's throat as he pulled her firmly against his well-carved torso, his warm, satin lips burning a trail from her mouth to the fluttering pulse upon her silken neck, his hands immediately cupping her large breasts and giving them a gentle squeeze that caused her to let out a small whimper and bury her face within the crook of his neck as if she were in hiding.  
  
_"I love you,"_ she breathed, placing an affectionate kiss upon his cheek as she tangled her fingers within his mossy-green hair and let out a fervid sigh full of completion.  
  
Smiling into her hair, Spike returned veraciously, _"I love you, too."  
_8888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888  
  
Good friends are scarce and terribly hard to find these days. Spike had died for a friend like that, yet it was all ended by a personal vendetta over a goddamned woman.  
  
But no, not just _any_ woman. The perfect, fair-skinned Julia, to be exact.  
  
She was the face that could launch 1,000 soldiers into battle. Well...perhaps just _two_ soldiers, anyway.  
  
Two poor, foolish men who were once like brothers, yet still were due to the terrible fact that they constantly fought over what they truly loved and desired.  
  
And, in the end, whom had truly won? Spike.....or Vicious?  
  
Many claim that Spike had won the battle _and_ the fair maiden's heart, but many also believe that Julia merely came to him for protection since she was in grave danger with Vicious and the syndicate.  
  
If this was, indeed, the case, Spike truly _did_ "die" in vain over a love that he never actually had.  
  
As he continued to contemplate all of this within the burdened bowels of his cluttered mind, Davis leaned over the balcony of his apartment and sighed, a cigarette dangling precariously from his lips as he wondered why, exactly, he had wanted to be just like his master.  
  
After all, why on earth would he have wanted to live in a constant version of hell, itself; all over a woman's sweet, beautiful face that allured everyone and everything with just a single passing glance.  
  
"Damn you," Davis cursed softly under his breath, Julia's demure countenance radiating before him as he continued to denounce her innocence and purity with a hatred that he never knew that he possessed against the angelic beauty. "Damn you for tearing the syndicate apart....damn you for destroying my best friend and making him want to die with each passing moment! _Oh,_ if only you'd come back.....I'd kill you, _myself!"_  
  
His cigarette falling abruptly from his lips and to the balcony ground with a sudden plop, Davis sourly stomped upon it and wondered in absolute amazement how he had only days before considered the fair blonde an actual gift from God.....a true reason for living.   
  
"She was nothin' but trouble," he decided aloud, stuffing his hands into his pants' pockets as he directed his gaze up towards the bluest sky that he had ever laid his eyes upon.  
  
The irony of his words suddenly struck him and he smiled, acknowledging humorlessly, "Hmph....and so was he."  
8888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888  
  
Oh, how she loved his hands.  
  
They were perfect in each and every way, always knowing exactly how and where to touch her to the point that she would lose all control and sense of reason.  
  
She found it to be simply incredible that these were the hands of a murdering syndicate leader; all soft, gentle, and caring with every single graceful flourish that they burned along her pale, silken flesh.  
  
So, standing there completely naked within the moonlight, Faye felt no real true surprise that Spike was there before her, his one hand gently cradling her hip while the other caressed the softness of her cheek, his warm, garnet eyes both haunting and alluring as he pulled her in for their first true, heartfelt kiss.  
  
It was unlike anything that Faye had ever experienced. All of their former kisses had been savage and brutal with a lustful carnality, but this one was much different. It was soft and gentle, yet extremely passionate, the love that they both now clearly felt reflecting off of each tender touch and embrace that they so passionately shared.  
  
Nuzzling the nape of her neck, Spike gently suckled upon Faye's fluttering pulse and rolled his thumbs over her tingling nipples, her breath immediately hitching in her throat as he lifted her up into his warm embrace and carried her on over towards her bed, which he placed her down upon with such care that it was as if he feared that she might break.  
  
_"You're so beautiful," _Spike breathed, gradually lowering himself atop his lover and situating himself between her legs with a look in his eyes that could have very easily melted her heart. _"I want to love you forever and ever."  
  
"Spike,"_ Faye gasped in return, clutching him to her bosom as he lightly nipped at her flesh with his teeth and soothed the slightly aggravated spots with his tongue, her soft moans only futher encouraging him as he was suddenly overcome by the overwhelming desire to hold her.  
  
Lightly caressing her between the legs, Spike couldn't help but moan, himself, as he felt her undeniable want for him, her deep jade eyes pleading with him to the point of sheer insanity as she reached up and touched his face.  
  
_"I love you,"_ she breathed, causing him to harden on impulse. _"I love you so incredibly much."  
  
_Spike wordlessly answered her by devouring her mouth with his own, their tongues dancing to the rhythm of their inner passion as their arms tangled about one another with a desperation that surprised them both just as equally.  
  
Letting out a deep and throaty moan, Spike stiffened as Faye gave him a long, firm stroke, his member throbbing within her taught grasp like steel as he grunted and felt his desire to take her to new heights rapidly escalating with each and every rise and fall of their sweat-slicked bodies.  
  
Gently flipping him over so that he was now beneath her awaiting body, Faye carefully positioned herself over his iron-hard arousal in an agonizingly slow manner, their eyes locking with a burning passion as she rigorously impaled herself upon him and felt as if something warm and incredibly wondrous was budding deep within her very heart and soul.  
  
Throwing his head back in utter ecstasy, Spike seized Faye by the hips and began to instinctively pump deeper within her, both moaning due to the incredible sensation that was radiating between them like a sudden burst of untamed heat, their soft gasps only further enhancing the passion that was rapidly combusting within them and adding fire to their already fully-ignited love.  
  
_"Spike,"_ Faye gasped, her trembling fingers eagerly running along the smooth expanse of his well-toned torso, his flesh quivering amidst her touch as she slowly leaned forward and placed a desirous kiss upon his warm, thin lips, his fingers now tangling their way within her hair as he tried his damndest to get closer.  
  
_God,_ he needed her. She was his water and his fire. Julia, he realized, had never accomplished that. She had always been either one or the other.  
  
Tightening his grip upon Faye's hips like an iron vice, Spike choked on a moan as he felt his seed explode deep within her, his muscled chest thrusting outward in utter delectation as he gasped and hauled her back down so that their lips could meet once more in a kiss filled with a deep and passionate desperation, his body melting down as he brought her netherwards along with him.  
  
Snuggling against him in utter adoration, Faye breathed a hushed "I love you" into his ear and fearfully awaited the outcome, wondering if he had been faking his devotion to her all along.  
  
Smiling, Spike breathed as smoothly as if he had been saying it all his life, _"I love you, too, Faye, and I always will."  
  
_Then, she smiled, too, her heart now a flutter and dancing deep within her bosom with a happiness unlike any that she had ever experienced, fore she finally, at long last, believed him.  
  
**A/N:** Welp, how was that??? Good enough? Heh. -.-' I didn't make it as raunchy as the past ones since I wanted this particular intimate moment to be more...well...genuine, if you will. If it seemed quote "unreal" to you, their newfound relationship will be further explained in later chapters, so please don't waste my time with the typical "OMG, where did THAT come from?!" review. Thankies! But please, by all means, DO review me! PLEASE!!! I'm BEGGIN' ya!!! I'm beginning to doubt myself!!! . Thank ya so much! Luv ya bunches! ,  
3 Kendra Luehr


	14. A Love Unlike Any Before

**  
  
A/N: **Welp, my friends, it's nearing the end...only one more chapter to go. It's been a while, I know, & I'm very happy to have received your wonderful, inspiring reviews. I hope I won't make you cry when you read this, or make you hate me, more importantly, heh. -.-' Please try to understand that once a writer gets inspiration, there's just NO turning back. With that said, please R&R, and TRY to enjoy! LoL_  
_  
  
_  
  
I was fading last night, lost out in the cold  
Couldn't see the light, and then she opened up the door  
I came in from the dark, fell into her arms just in time  
  
And now I know that I have left the **past** behind, won't let it go  
  
[Chorus]  
You could tell me tonight   
That maybe the world would end  
That the sun wouldn't rise  
And it was gonna rain again  
Just as long as she's in my arms  
It's gonna be a perfect day  
  
There's a look in her eyes  
It makes me feel alright  
It lights the perfect sky  
That I couldn't see before,  
That she helped me to find, now that I've seen the shine,  
I know that I'll never be alone  
  
'Cuz now I know that I have love I can't deny, won't let it go   
  
[Chorus]  
  
Its gonna be a perfect day  
  
I think I lost you in another life,  
A part of me that I left behind  
I won't go on without you  
And now I know that I have put the **past** behind, I let it go  
  
[Chorus x2]  
  
Its gonna be a perfect day_  
_  
"Perfect Day", Clay Aiken  
_  
CH 14  
  
_         Plink. Plink. Plink. Plink.  
_         
         Faye continued to lie there tangled up amidst the bed sheets as the rain poured down in a mystic veil from the Heavens above, her heartbeat slow and steady as she somnolently watched the gray clouds roll listlessly across the sky from the view of the hotel window in a graceful dance full of repose.  
  
         Gradually hauling herself up into a sitting position, Faye gathered the sheets up in front of her bare bosom and looked over at her lover with a warm smile upon her lips, his moss-green locks moving ever-so-slightly with each soft breath that he happened to take.  
  
         _Oh,_ how she loved him.  
  
         Everything that he said or did seemed like an image of sheer beauty to her, and she hated the fact that anyone, especially Spike, could have such a strong hold over her emotions.  
  
         Slowly leaning over, Faye gave him a warm, gentle kiss, thus causing his eyes to immediately flutter open and find himself staring directly into two brilliant jade orbs, the passionate memories of the night before immediately flooding back into the cluttered bowels of his mind like the walls of a dam exploding.  
  
         "Why did you love me?," Faye suddenly questioned, reminding him very much of what Julia had asked in the graveyard so very long ago. "Did you mean it, or were you just looking for sex, again?"  
  
         Spike immediately sat up beside her, his warm, garnet eyes glazing over with fervor as he insisted with a veraciousness that deeply surprised her, "I meant every word that I said, Faye...._every word._ As of right now, I can finally say that I know what it feels like to actually be _alive."  
  
         _"But _why?,"_ she continued to press, "what about Julia? Surely that goddamned woman still plagues your mind and haunts you in your very dreams!"  
  
         Spike bowed his head and nodded. "There's no doubt about that, but I-I'm just _so_ sick of it all! As soon as I laid my eyes on you at the hospital after our one-night-stand, I knew that you could help me to forget......to _start over._ Say that you'll help me, Faye....._please."  
  
         _Something deep within his voice let her know that he meant every word, her heart going out to him as she enveloped his waist within her caring embrace and sought his lips with her own in a chaste kiss, her lover instantly moaning into her mouth as an indirect plea for more.  
  
         Faye knew that she shouldn't give in to him again, but her core was throbbing with a need that she felt that she could not possibly ignore any longer.  
  
         Delving his tongue deep within the confinements of Faye's mouth, Spike let out a low grunt as he felt her nails drag across his flesh and leave bloody half moons in their wake, her back arching so that her breasts molded neatly against his hands and left him moaning softly into her open mouth like a lovelorn fool.  
  
         _Knock! Knock! Knock!  
  
         "Dammit,"_ Spike cursed softly under his breath, stiffening a top his lover in utter discouragement now that he realized that his desires would have to go unfulfilled. "Who the hell is it?! I'm _busy!"  
  
         _"Uh....it's Davis," came the masculine reply on the other side of the door, his tone clearly reflecting his obvious astonishment over hearing his master so obviously frustrated. "I have something _really_ important to tell you, so do ya think that I could possibly come in for a sec?"  
  
         Spike sighed, then muttered resentfully, "Yeah, _yeah,_ just give me a minute....I've gotta get dressed."  
  
         "Ok," came the cheerful reply, thus causing Spike to roll his eyes as he fetched his pair of pants from off of the floor and tossed Faye one of her robes for her to put on.  
  
         Hurriedly slipping into his trousers, Spike stumbled on over towards the door and immediately zipped up his fly, muttering a few choice words under his breath before he plastered on a fake smile and opened up the door in order to greet his guest. _"Davis!_ How _are_ you?"  
  
         Davis raised an eyebrow at the apparent change of attitude, his perverted little mind immediately understanding once he glanced into the shabby hotel room and witnessed Faye smoothing out her hair in front of a mirror and applying some foundation upon something on her neck that very much appeared to be a hickey.  
  
         Chuckling at this, Davis congratulated slyly, "Another homerun in the ballpark, eh? Congrats on scoring with the hottest babe that I've _ever_ seen!"  
  
         _"Davis!,"_ Spike snarled, causing him to immediately pipe down. "Faye is _not_ just some game to me! I-I love her, and I......um....."  
  
         Davis smirked. "Say no more, Romeo. It's amore'...I get it. It happens to the best of us, my friend."_  
  
         _Spike rolled his eyes, then remarked rather irritably, "Surely you came here to tell me something more important than the muses of love and foolery!"  
  
         "Oh, yeah..._that,"_ Davis acknowledged, scratching his ear as he let out a rather nervous cough. "Ya see, the Van have pinpointed Derek's exact location and are gonna get the remaining true Red Dragons to make a surprise attack on him later this evening. I just figured that you'd wanna know."  
  
         Spike frowned deeply. "Damn right, I'd wanna know. In fact, I'm going to meet up with him, myself."  
  
         Faye gasped, dropping her brush within an instant of sheer panic as she whirled around in order to face him from the mirror, wailing urgently, "Spike, _no!_ I need for you to be alive! I-I couldn't live through losing you all over again!" _  
_         
         "I _won't_ die, Faye," he insisted, his eyes hardening at just the mere thought of the cold-blooded killer that he was determined to face. "He hurt you and Katy, and for that he must pay with his life."  
  
         "Then let me come with you, I-"  
  
         _"No,"_ Spike immediately interjected, shaking his head with a firmness that she couldn't possibly override. "It's far too dangerous.....Davis is the only one that will accompany me."  
  
         Davis blanched. "I _am?!_ But I.....erm.....you're right. I-I _should_ come......for Katy's sake."  
  
         Spike nodded. _"Good...._Faye, give me my gun."  
  
         She amazingly did as she was told, her eyes moist and glistening with unshed tears as she handed him his Jericho and opened her mouth to pour forth her boundless love for him, but he held up his hand and smiled, acknowledging softly, "I know, Faye.....I love you, too. Let's save it for when I get back, alright?"  
  
         At this statement Faye felt as if she could bawl like a simpering fool, if it weren't for Spike immediately bringing her back to reality the moment that he pressed his mouth passionately against her own and stroked her silken tresses in utter adoration, his voice soft and filled with assurance as he breathed against her warm, satin lips, "I _will _return, Faye, and that's a _promise."  
  
         _"I know," she returned tearfully, embracing him as if her very life depended on it, _"I know."  
_88888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888  
         "When cowards hide in abandoned steel mines, they deserve to die the cowardly death that they deserve. You agree, don't you, Derek?"  
  
         The young man stiffened upon hearing his name, a smirk gradually forming along his thin lips as he turned around in order to face his adversary and chuckled, questioning with mock pleasantness, "What, no infantry? You decided to come here all by yourself?"  
  
         "Yes," Spike acknowledged, completely unable to keep a smirk of his own from slipping across his lips as he took a slight step forward. "My good friend Davis is waiting outside...._just in case."  
  
         _Derek snorted. "A wise decision."  
  
         "Oh, you think so?"  
  
         "I _know_ so."  
  
         Spike chuckled, then withdrew his revolver from within his hipholster, urging smugly, "Enough with your games, Derek. All I want is your life, so let's not waste any more time."  
  
         "You don't wanna do that."  
  
         "Oh? Are you pleading for your life?"  
  
         Derek spat at his adversary's feet in utter contempt, returning crisply, "I _never_ plead for my life. Pleading is for the weak and the hopeless. Pleading is for lowlife scumbags such as Katy, Davis, Electra, and _Faye."  
_         
         Spike stiffened. "Don't you _dare_ talk about her that way."  
  
         "Or else what? You'll _shoot_ me?," Derek continued to ridicule, clearly pushing his luck. "Yes, of _course_ you would.....only _cowards_ shoot their opponents. _Real_ men use nothing but their fists."  
  
         "Very well," Spike complied, allowing his Jericho to slip forth from his grasp and drop to the cement floor with a subtle clatter. "If that's how you feel, then you've got it."  
  
         Derek smirked. _"Good..._it's always a pleasure to spill your blood, Mr. Spiegel."  
  
         _"Likewise,"_ Spike acknowledged, smirking, as well, as he lunged forward and sent a tremendous uppercut towards his opponent before bone cracked against bone.   
  
         Only daunted for a brief moment by this, Derek immediately counter-attacked with several powerful swipes, which Spike easily evaded with the fluid-like resistance that he always managed to emanate.  
  
         Dropping down to the floor and extending his long, spindly leg, Spike hurriedly swept Derek off of his feet and onto his ass before leaping up into the air and delivering a flawless bicycle kick to his opponent's jaw.  
  
         Before he could celebrate too much, however, Derek immediately unsheathed a small dagger from within his trench coat and lashed out at him like a madman, the weapon nailing its target directly in the chest before the mossy-green-haired man collapsed to his knees in utter astonishment.  
  
         _"You cheating bastard,"_ Spike choked between clenched teeth, grasping at his wound while seething in absolute pain and bewilderment. "I played by your goddamned rules....look who's the coward, _now!"  
  
         _"And I thank you," Derek acknowledged, completely ignoring his adversary's comment, altogether, as he lifted the coruscating dagger up to his lips and licked the weapon clean of the blood that had once adorned its blade of quietus. "Mmm...isn't victory _tasty?"  
  
         _Watching all of this in complete and utter disgust, Spike shakily staggered up to his feet, still prepared to see this through to the very end.  
  
         Derek appeared to be rather surprised by this, questioning with apparent amusement, "What, you _still _think you can win?"  
  
         "I have to," Spike returned, wobbling a bit, _"for Faye."  _  
_         
         _"Well _how_ sweet," Derek acknowledged, chuckling a bit. "I hope that she won't mind my returning you to her in _pieces."     _  
  
         Spike let out a growl at this, then lunged forward blindly at his adversary amidst his tremendous outrage, Derek's dagger slicing through his torso like a knife through butter before skittering across the floor and out of his reach with a subtle clatter.  
  
         _"Ugh,"_ Spike groaned, grimacing as he felt his own blood pulsate forth through the incision like a steadfast waterfall of scarlet.  
  
         Pressing his appendages firmly against the wound with the sole hopes of keeping his insides from spilling out, Spike staggered slightly forward, his sight wavering as he felt the life draining out of him at a maddening speed.  
  
         _BANG! BANG! BANG!  
  
         _Derek emitted a loud gasp the moment that those three bullets tore through his back and out his front, his breath instantly deserting him as he collapsed upon the floor in a heap of scarlet and cowardice.  
  
         _"Davis,"_ Spike choked in recognition upon seeing his friend, his voice wavering ever-so-slightly as he dropped down to his knees and took in several labored breaths.  
  
         Cursing, Davis immediately rushed over to his aid, chiding irritably, "Dammit, Spike....I _told_ you to let me accompany you instead of making me wait outside as backup! Now you're all beat up like a bloody pulp of the man that you came in as!"     
  
         _"Shut up,"_ Spike muttered, still managing to smile despite the terrible pain in his torso. _"I'm dying, so at least let me die in peace, if that's not too much to ask."  
  
         _Davis blanched. "Dude, you're gonna be _alright!_ You promised Faye you'd come back!"  
  
         _"Don't you think I **know** that? It's hard enough on me, as it is,"_ Spike mumbled, his beautiful two-toned irises mellowing out the moment that he thought of his sweet vixen. _"I.......I want you to give her something for me."  
  
         _"Spike, there's no fucking _way_ that I'm just gonna stand here and let you talk about dying, like this! You're gonna make it! If you survived your encounter with Vicious, you can most certainly-"  
         
_"**Please**."  
  
         _Davis choked upon hearing his master beg in such a desperate intonation, his hand trembling as he extended his arm in order to take whatever it was that Spike was divulging forth from his pocket.  
  
         "What is it?"  
  
         _"My love for Faye,"_ Spike replied cryptically, a warm smile tugging at the corners of his lips as he laid back down upon the cement floor and sighed deeply. _"It's my heart.....my soul........**everything**."  
_         
         Terribly confused by his master's explanation, Davis pocketed the small box and piece of paper, asking rather softly, "And what should I say whenever I see her?"  
  
         _"Tell her that I'll always be with her,"_ Spike returned in a monotone barely above a whisper, his voice slowly dying away, _"tell her that I'll always be there watching over her......**guiding** her."  
  
         _"Is that it?"  
  
         Spike smiled. _"No, of course not. Tell her that I love her and I always have. Tell her that she was the last thing on my mind; **not** Julia."  
  
         _Davis let out a small laugh, returning warmly, "So you're finally free of that stupid wench's strong hold over you, huh? All because of Faye?"  
  
         He didn't answer.  
  
         _"Spike?"  
  
         _Still no answer.  
  
         Bowing his head in utter despair, Davis nodded, then ran his hand over his comrade's eyes so that they closed, his tone soft and breathy as he conceded aloud in a voice barely above a whisper, "Yep......_you're **finally** free."_  
88888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888  
**(The Seatbelt's "Adieu" plays)**   
  
         _Knock! Knock! Knock!  
_         
         Faye jumped, clutching a small white device within her taut grasp that had just recently sealed her fate.  
  
         Taking a deep, cleansing breath, she decided that it was now or never that she tell Spike the wonderful news.  
  
         _"He loves me....he'll understand,"_ she assured herself as she anxiously approached the door and prepared to receive the caller. _"He'll never turn me away because of this........he **wouldn't**."  
  
         _Finally receiving the nerve to twist the doorknob, Faye hurriedly ripped open the door, exclaiming cheerfully in recognition, _"Davis!_ Tell Spike to hurry up! I need to tell him that-"  
  
         "You're pregnant," Davis deadpanned, pointing down towards the small white test in her hand.  
  
         She nodded, hardly able to contain her apparent euphoria. "I know, isn't it _wonderful?_ I'll finally have a family......somewhere to _belong."  
  
         _"Yeah," Davis agreed weakly, _"family."  
  
         _Faye immediately took note of her comrade's aberrant behavior, her voice gradually rising in decibels as she demanded fearfully, "Davis....what's _wrong?_ Please tell me that Spike isn't...."  
  
         He nodded.  
  
         "Oh, God," Faye breathed, shaking her head wildly back and forth, "oh, _God! _You're lying! You're just jealous that Spike and I are so deeply in love, so you wanted to play some sort of dirty trick on me!"  
  
         _"No, _Faye, that's not-"  
  
         _"LIES!!!,"_ she screamed, clapping her hands over her ears in utter agony. "They're _all_ lies! Spike said that he'd come back......he _lied_ to me! Was he lying about his love for me, too?!"  
  
         Davis immediately shook his head, insisting softly, "He wanted me to tell you that Julia wasn't the last person on his mind; _you_ were. He promised to watch over and guide you day and night, no matter where or how far away you are. He _loves_ you, Faye.......never doubt that."  
  
         "I don't believe in promises _or_ love, anymore," Faye whimpered, burying her face within the security and comfort of her hands as her shoulders began to heave along with her tremendous sobs. "I-I loved and I lost, and now......oh, _God, _I'm _alone!"  
  
         _Davis let out a heavy sigh, then suddenly remembered Spike's gift, his hand immediately snatching it and pulling it forth from his coat pocket as he announced softly, "Here.....this is for you. Spike wanted you to have it."  
  
         Faye gave the box and parchment a slight look of reluctance, then gingerly took them from his fingers, her breath instantly catching in her throat as she opened up the piece of paper and read:  
  
             _Faye-  
       As you know, I'm not a very eloquent man, so what I need to say to you I've decided to write down on paper. These past few weeks haven't been anything but heaven for me.....you've truly made me feel alive, again. I can't thank you enough, and I guess what I'm trying to say is.....well.....will you do me the honors of making me the luckiest guy in the galaxy? Yeah, I know, that was **really** corny and cliche', but dammit, I can't help how I feel. I want you to be mine, Faye, forever and always. Will you marry me? **Please**?  
             Love Always,  
  
                  Spike  
  
_         Faye couldn't help but laugh at his 'romantic' proposal, tears cascading freely down along her cheeks like hot candle wax as she slowly opened up the box, truly fearing that she would die due to her utmost grief if she unearthed what she thought she would.  
  
         "Oh!," she exclaimed, bursting into tears once more once she laid her eyes upon the scintillating engagement ring, her heart breaking in two directly down the center as she shakily slipped it onto her finger and brought it up to her lips as if it were Spike, himself, her voice cracking ever-so-slightly as she acknowledged breathlessly in return, "Yes, Spike.....I _will_ marry you...._forever and always."  
  
         _With this said, she immediately curled up into a ball and placed a hand over her stomach, tears searing along her long, kohl lashes as she realized that all she had left of her true love was a note, a ring, and a child.  
  
**A/N:** I know, I know, I'm a monster....PLEASE don't flame me! . If you wanna read some **HAPPY ENDINGS**, read my other fics! They're happy endings! Oh...except for Twilight's Symphony, heh. -.-' There's an epilogue next, & it's kinda sweet, so please R&R that, as well!   
3 Kendra Luehr  
  



	15. Epilogue

**A/N:** Welp, this is it! The epilogue, & the FINAL chappie! Yaaay! ::sniff sniff:: I didn't want it to come to this, but ::sniff sniff:: it has! =( Please R&R, my lovely reviewers! **  
  
(Yoko Kanno's "The Music Box" plays)**         
  
         And so he came and went with the rain. I always figured deep-down that he would. The rain was his home; his shelter. It was as natural for them to coincide as it was for peanut butter and jelly.  
  
         So was his quick return into my life truly worth it? Would I risk it all to do it again? _You'd better believe it.  
  
         _Our son, Kasedy Alexander Spiegel, is now three years old and the most beautiful creature in this Godforsaken universe that I have ever laid eyes on.  
  
         He has his father's unruly moss-green hair and handsome features, but my piercing green eyes and smart ass attitude. Well...actually, I suppose that that last trait could correspond a bit, huh?  
  
         Kasedy is, by far, my most prized possession and dearest friend. Although he is a constant reminder of his father, I find that I actually feel closer to him, somehow; as if he can hear me.  
  
         Sometimes I wake up in the night and cry out his name, only to encircle my arms about an empty wad of sheets.  
  
        _God,_ I loved him, and still do. Nothing can ever change that.  
  
         I'm just thankful that I had been given the chance to live by his side and to see this ugly world through his eyes; his beautiful, perfect eyes that have moved me so deeply.  
  
         Every time he'd gaze into my own eyes, he would somehow make me feel completely flawless....perfect, even.  
  
         If I had just one wish, I would most certainly turn back time and re-play our short-lived romance over and over again just so that I could feel his love for me coursing throughout my veins every time that we'd touch; every time that we'd make love.  
  
         He has forever stolen my heart, and I now know that that I'll never be able to get it back. I honestly don't care, anymore, because I know that I will never, _ever_ meet a man as amazing and wonderful as my beloved Spike Spiegel.  
  
         _Rest in peace, my love._  
  
**A/N:** ::sniff sniff:: I am SO sorry! Please don't kill me! . LoL I, again, apologize for this abrupt ending, but I rather like it this way. I feel that it's much better than some corny little "I love you, Spike!" "I love you, too, Faye! Let's get hitched!" ending that I'm accustomed to writing, heh. -.-' But again, if you'd like to read some happy ones, **PLEASE** read one of my other fics! Especially "All That He Couldn't Leave Behind"....I've only got 66 reviews for that one. =( LoL, and "The Affair" & "The Protector" are both fairly new, so please check those out, as well! Thanks for all of you who have so amazingly stuck with me! Luv ya bunches!  
3 Kendra Luehr  
  



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